JOSUE ISAI RAMOS FIGUEROA-UNSPLASH

A LABOR group urged the Philippine government to take immediate and serious action against the impending threat of heat stress in workplaces, following the release of the latest State of the Climate report in Azerbaijan.

“Climate change is destroying jobs, lives and livelihoods. While recovering from the destruction from devastating typhoons, we should expect extreme heat to hit us as hard, if not harder,” Julius H. Cainglet, vice-president of the Federation of Free Workers said in a statement on Tuesday.

The World Meteorological Organization report presented at the 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan said that global air temperatures in January and September 2024 averaged 1.54 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, highlighting the urgent need for measures to address the increasing risk of heat stress.

Mr. Cainglet suggested innovative measures like heat stress insurance and broader climate adaptation efforts for communities and businesses as labor advisories alone will not be enough to confront this issue.

At COP29, trade unions from the Global South, including the Filipino group Workers for Just Transition, are advocating for the Global North to commit trillions of dollars toward climate initiatives in poorer and developing nations.

COP29 commenced last Nov. 11 until Nov. 22. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana