UAE | Employment
Heat cases 'take a nosedive with midday break rule'
Heat-related cases in the emirate has dropped dramatically in the two weeks after the midday break came into effect, hospitals have reported.
- By Nina Muslim, Staff Reporter
- Published: 23:25 July 12, 2007
- Labourers, like these working near Jebel Ali, mostly work under the sun at the several construction sites across Dubai.
- Image Credit: Devadasan/Gulf News
Dubai: Heat-related cases in the emirate has dropped dramatically in the two weeks after the midday break came into effect, hospitals have reported.
The UAE implemented a mandatory midday break rule for labourers from July 1, banning outdoor work from 12.30pm to 3pm. The midday work ban will end on August 31.
Since the implementation, Rashid Hospital Trauma Centre, which receives most of the emirate's emergency cases, has received six cases, a far cry from the 11 cases the centre received in the last two weeks of May and 82 cases throughout June.
No deaths have been reported since the last weeks of June, which saw two heat-related deaths - one at Jebel Ali Hospital and another at Dubai Hospital.
Compliance
Dr Viktor Mikhaeel Butros, senior specialist registrar at the centre, told Gulf News that the drop in cases was indicative of companies' compliance with the law.
"Companies are complying better. The cases that we have received so far were probably from the ones that violated the midday break rule," he said.
Of the six cases admitted to the centre thus far, half were brought in after 12.30pm, when the midday break was supposed to have started.
One case was brought in around 3pm. All came in on July 4, which the weather department recorded as the most uncomfortable day of the year in Dubai, with a score of eight on a 10-point comfort index.
At its peak, temperatures soared to 41 degrees Celcius and humidity was at 61 per cent that day.
The weather has not reached the same levels since then, which Dr Butros said was also partially the reason in decrease in cases.
Weather
"The weather has not been too hot, either. We hope the weather will continue like this," he said, adding that the public, too, have learnt to prevent heat-related illnesses.
Private hospitals located in the new development areas, such as Al Ghusais, also reported a drop in cases.
Dr Shailesh Upadhyay, medical director at the NMC Specialty Hospital, told Gulf News they have not received any cases this month.
"We rarely receive cases anyway unless they are really emergencies, but we still had a few last month. But this month, we had none," he said.
"It shows companies' pattern of complying with the midday break rule. Otherwise, we would have seen more cases because we're surrounded by construction projects," he added.
AWARENESS
More firms adhere to regulation, says official
The drop in heat stroke cases is a clear indication that companies are adhering to the midday break rule, said a senior Ministry of Labour official.
Humaid Bin Deemas, Assistant Undersecretary at the Ministry of Labour, told Gulf News that awareness on the midday break rule has increased dramatically among the public.
"I have been optimistic that this year companies will adhere much more to the decision than the previous years and the drop of heat related cases is a clear sign of this," he said.
Companies have come to realise that the midday break is not a legitimate demand for workers' welfare but also it turns out beneficial for them as workers are more productive with a break than without, he added.
The midday break initiative was launched in 2005 providing the much needed halt from work during afternoon in July and August.
- Wafa Issa, Staff Reporter
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