Employers should plan for hotter summers
June 29, 2009
In the light of the Government's recently published UK Climate Projections data, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) General Secretary, Brendan Barber, has commented that the predictions of much hotter summers for the UK in future years make it crucial that "governments of the world strike a deal and prevent further damaging climate change".
Mr Barber pointed out that rising temperatures, the risk of floods and disruption to travel as a potential result of climate change may all have an impact on the workplace. Therefore, employers should be making plans now for how changes in the UK's climate could alter the lives of their employees and the way in which they work.
The recent report from the TUC, Changing Work in a Changing Climate (April 2009) suggested that employers who are serious about the challenge posed by climate change and consider the welfare of their staff as they adapt will be the companies that reap the benefits of a more motivated, highly skilled and well-equipped workforce.
The report warned that, although damage done to the environment by past and present carbon emissions has forced companies to think about adapting their products and services to a changing climate, few businesses have considered what such a dramatic change in the UK's weather would mean for their staff, the jobs they undertake and their working conditions.
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