Hong Kong’s guidance for protecting workers from heat should be made more specific to different occupations and working environments, Executive Council member Lam Ching-choi said in a television interview. He also suggested using more sensitive monitoring indicators to strengthen protection for outdoor workers’ health and safety.
Lam, chairman of the Council for Carbon Neutrality and Sustainable Development, said the existing work heat warning mechanism and related guidance had room for improvement. He described the current guidance as seemingly not sensitive enough.
Lam’s proposals include developing more detailed guidance for different types of work and environments. The report did not say whether the authorities would adopt them, or what the proposed monitoring indicators would measure.
The comments came after Hong Kong recently experienced record high temperatures and heavy rain. Lam said society needed to pursue emissions reduction and climate adaptation at the same time as extreme weather became more frequent.
The work heat warning mechanism has also been criticised by some people who said it had issued only a yellow warning since its launch, leading them to question its effectiveness. The effectiveness of the mechanism remains unconfirmed in the report. Lam said policy needed to balance avoiding excessive disruption with addressing the practical risks faced by outdoor workers.