As the thermostat gets turned up outside, WorkSafeBC is reminding people to do what they can to keep their internal temperature down.

Environment Canada has issued a Special Weather Statement for the southern interior.

WorkSafeBC is suggesting you drink plenty of water, wear light coloured clothing, do your most labour intensive work before 11:00 in the morning or after 3:00 in the afternoon and take breaks in cooler spaces. Senior Management of Prevention Field Services Barry Nakahara says to be on the look out for heat related issues. “Workers and employers should be aware of the signs and symptoms of heat stress and it kind of starts at the early stages with profuse sweating and high breathing rates and it might feel like you’re having trouble recovering from that physical work.”

Both employers and employees need to be on the lookout for heat related symptoms and make sure they’re staying hydrated and cool when possible. Nakahara says there are a few factors that you want to consider. “So it’s not just the heat itself, when you add humidity to it and high work output, work that requires a high level of physical exertion. Combine that with sometimes certain jobs have significant protective clothing that’s required.”

He says there are certain jobs, like construction workers, that bring a greater risk of heat related concerns. “You don’t think about agriculture for example. People maybe working in greenhouses where the humidity is a bit of a factor and as the temperature rises and it’s kept within the greenhouse that could be problematic. They also might be wearing certain types of protective equipment for spraying chemicals like pesticides.”

There were 38 accepted claims for work-related injuries caused by heat last year in British Columbia.