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Global Heat Waves Signal Climate Risks

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India is currently suffering under a heat wave that has lasted over a month, with temperatures reaching a record 118 degrees Fahrenheit (48 degrees Celsius) in New Delhi on June 10 and 122 degrees (50 degrees Celsius) in the western city of Churu. The death toll has been estimated to be at least 36, though some sources put the number at more than 150. Europe is also preparing for its own massive heat wave this week, with temperatures expected to be 36 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius) higher than the seasonal average of 72 degrees (22 degrees Celsius).

This pattern of heat waves has become a yearly occurrence across the globe. Europe faced similar heat last year, as did Asia, with Japan experiencing record-breaking temperatures in 2018, which sent more than 71,000 to hospitals, killing 138. North America also saw extended higher temperatures in 2018, with 41 heat records across the United States, and heat-related deaths overwhelming Montreal’s city morgue.

Experts say that these global record-breaking incidents are the result of climate change, and likely forecast a new normal of dangerous summer heat.

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According to Stefan Rahmstorf, co-chair of Earth System Analysis at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Research (PIK), “Monthly heat records all over the globe occur five times as often today as they would in a stable climate. This increase in heat extremes is just as predicted by climate science as a consequence of global warming caused by the increasing greenhouse gases from burning coal, oil and gas.

” French national meteorological service Météo-France echoed these concerns, saying that heat waves’ frequency “is expected to double by 2050.” And according to a 2017 study from The Lancet Planetary Health journal, the number of deaths resulting from weather-related disasters could skyrocket in the future, killing as many as 152,000 people each year between 2071 and 2100, more than 50 times greater than the average annual deaths from 1980 to 2010.

As Risk Management has previously reported, these changes are also already impacting business operations globally, with direct economic losses from climate-related disasters (including heat waves) increased 151% from 1998 to 2017, according to the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. Heat waves have serious effects on business operations, impacting things like road conditions and agriculture, as well as workers’ health and safety. More than 15 million U.S. workers have jobs requiring time outdoors, and according to the World Bank, even for indoor workers, productivity declines by 2% per degree Celsius above room temperature.

Many countries have taken steps to mitigate the effects of heat waves on their populations. For example, since 2016, India has been providing shelter for homeless people, opening water stations for hydration, cutting building heat absorption by painting roofs white and imposing working hour changes, curfews and restrictions on outdoor activities. These efforts have successfully reduced heat-related deaths from more than 2,400 in 2015 to 250 in 2017.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends similar steps to the ones India is taking, as well as ensuring that energy and water systems are properly functioning, establishing hotlines for reporting cases of high-risk individuals and encouraging energy conservation to reduce the chances of overwhelming electric systems. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recommends that employers and workers facing higher temperatures in the workplace pay close attention for the signs of heat stroke, and keep three words in mind: water, rest and shade.

While these on-the-ground measures can reduce the immediate effects on workers and vulnerable populations like the elderly, children and the homeless, PIK’s Rahmstorf warns that “Only rapidly reducing fossil fuel use and hence CO2 emissions can prevent a disastrous further increase of weather extremes linked to global heating.”

Japanese Companies Look to Cut Costs by Curbing Smoking

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Concerned about lost productivity and higher employee healthcare costs, many employers are taking serious steps to eliminate smoking among employees. In Japan, a number of companies and educational institutions are now even basing hiring decisions on whether an applicant smokes.

Some scientific evidence suggests that employers’ concerns about the added costs costs are valid. A 2018 study conducted by Ohio State University found that smokers in the U.S. cost private sector employers an average of $5,816 extra per year, excluding additional costs that the employees themselves may pay. These employer costs include “excess absenteeism,” “presenteeism” (lower productivity on the job), “smoking breaks,” “excess healthcare costs” and “pension benefits,” with time devoted to smoking breaks making up the majority of costs. Stopping smoking eliminates lost time for smoke breaks entirely, unlike other high-cost factors like healthcare and absenteeism, which could continue after an employee stops smoking.

Smoking is more prevalent in Japan than in the United States, especially for men.

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Although the rate has been falling steadily, a 2018 national study showed that 28.2% of men and 9% of women in Japan smoke, compared to 15.8% of men and 12.2% of women in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In April, more than 20 Japanese companies signed onto a corporate partnership to promote anti-smoking steps. Starting in spring 2020, for example, insurance company Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Himawari will not hire any new employee who smokes, and will require its high-level officials to sign a document pledging not to smoke during work hours. The private sector in Japan is not alone in pushing for less employee smoking—Nagasaki University announced last month that it would stop hiring faculty who smoke and banned smoking on campus, and Oita University has “put priority on nonsmokers” when hiring.

Part of this effort is incentivizing quitting.

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Employees who quit smoking at Japanese company Rohto Pharmaceutical Co., for example, get tokens they can use at the company cafeteria or for other benefits. Marketing firm Piala Inc. is also offering an extra 6 paid days off to non-smoking employees, and 4 of its 42 smokers have reportedly quit smoking thus far.

While programs to incentivize quitting may seem intuitive, according to Ohio State’s Micah Berman, lead author of the school’s study, these efforts may also be pricey for employers. “Employers should be understanding about how difficult it is to quit smoking and how much support is needed,” he said.
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“It’s definitely not just a cost issue, but employers should be informed about what the costs are when they are considering these policies.” These can include the costs of direct incentives like the ones noted above, or the additional healthcare cost of prescription drugs or counseling to help quit. However, in the long-term, companies that implement cessation programs—especially those that have a large number of smoking employees to start—are likely to see the benefits outweigh initial investment costs within 4 years.

Companies may save money by encouraging employees to quit smoking, especially in lost time and healthcare spending, but they should examine the costs and benefits of instituting formal or informal policies to change their employees’ habits. Running afoul of legal protections, as well as making workplaces unfriendly to employees who smoke, being perceived as interfering with employees’ activities outside of work and other considerations may outweigh employers’ concerns for their workers’ health and excess spending.

Japanese companies have stated that they believe these steps are legal, and some U.

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S.-based companies, including Scotts Miracle-Gro and Weyco, Inc., have reportedly made similar efforts to discourage their workforces from smoking. Some companies in the U.S. may be unable to explore such potential programs, however. According to legal experts, “around half of [U.S.] states currently legally protect employees from being denied positions, or having employment contracts terminated, due to tobacco use.”

The Risks of Social Media: Decreased Worker Productivity

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To me, the biggest concerns companies should have about social media revolve around reputation damage, legal liability and workplace issues (cyber-stalking, sexual harassment, etc.). These are the issues that can hurt the most, with some other things to watch for being improper disclosure of confidential/financial information, data breaches, viruses/malware and any other general network security concerns.

We have been covering such concerns throughout the year in our Risks of Social Media series (something we will be bringing to print in Risk Management magazine in our October issue. Look for that next week. And see the pretty cover our designer created for the story here.)

Another issue that comes up constantly whenever I discuss social media risks with executives is decreased worker productivity.

To many, this seems to be the largest drawback to social media. In their eyes, workers who previously toiled away for the duration of their eight-hour shift are now so enthralled by Facebook and Twitter that they simply cannot help but peruse the sites constantly throughout the day. While they are doing that, of course, they aren’t getting any work done. Less work equals less production, which equals lower profits.

The way they see it, that is the grand downside of Facebook: it compels people to not work while they are at work.

The way I see it … that’s a crock.

Sure. It happens. Some people do spend a lot of time on social networks. They chat with friends, they look at family vacation photos and play Farmville. They waste a lot of time.

But this is really nothing new.

The internet is full of distractions, and if someone doesn’t want to work, they will find a way to not work. Facebook and Twitter did not create a new wave of malaise and boredom among those with dull jobs. People trapped in boring jobs — or just poor workers employed in good jobs — have been finding ways to be unproductive at work since well before the internet was even used at most companies.

Cigarette breaks and the water cooler have existed for a long time. Watch Mad Men and you will see how even the high-powered execs of the 1950s and 60s wasted time boozing and socializing at the office. The Super Bowl, March Madness, fantasy football, Survivor, American Idol, the Oscars and a seemingly limitless amount of other distractions may take up a substantial part of any given employee’s attention while at work.

Or take this fictional exchange between “efficiency expert” Bob Porter and data processor Peter Gibbons in Office Space, a cinematic lampoon of the modern workplace:

Bob Porter: We’re trying to get a feel for how people spend their day at work … So, if you would, would you walk us through a typical day, for you?

Peter Gibbons: Yeah. I generally come in at least fifteen minutes late, ah, I use the side door – that way Lumbergh can’t see me, heh heh – and, uh, after that I just sorta space out for about an hour.

Bob Porter: Da-uh? Space out?

Peter Gibbons: Yeah, I just stare at my desk; but it looks like I’m working. I do that for probably another hour after lunch, too. I’d say in a given week I probably only do about fifteen minutes of real, actual work.

The point here is that if your workers don’t like their jobs, they can find many ways to not get any work done. And if they do like there jobs, the allure of Facebook — despite all the buzz you hear about its unprecedented ability to connect millions — is not nearly great enough to force quality employees to ignore their responsibilities.

Facebook Productivity

(The comical part about this whole post is that I myself was on Facebook prior to writing it — and then Facebook had a major, extended service interruption, which prompted me to actually do some work and write down my thoughts on the matter after seeing the satirical tweet above from @OPB. Yes, I’m a hypocrite. I know.)

This isn’t to say that companies should not explain to employees in a social media policy that they are not to waste time on Facebook all day. They should do exactly that.

But it’s not some new-age problem. Workers should not be wasting time doing anything. That’s the message. Rolling out some draconian policy that applies to the employee’s social media usage, however, is more likely to be alienating and de-motivational than it is to make employees want to do more work. At least that’s how I see it.

Besides, most people today who use Facebook and Twitter extensively can do it on their smartphone anyway. So if you implement controls on their desktop computer, they can just sit in their cubical and twiddle away on their iPhones and Blackberrys. Or, ya know, just sorta space out for about an hour after lunch.

For more on the topic, Gini Dietrich of the excellent blog Spin Sucks seems to share my view, calling worker productivity a “management issue” not a social media issue.