This document adopts an approach where actions, particularly control measures and medical supervision, are specified as a function of the class of severity of the potential effects. It provides instructions for appropriate management practices for hot workplaces and describes:

—     a procedure for managing work in hot environments;

—     guidelines on how to apply the different International Standards in the field of thermal environments when assessing heat-related risks;

—     guidelines to organize the medical supervision of the people working in hot environments;

—     information for instructing the persons working in hot environments;

—     an example of assessment of a hot working situation.

The procedure described in this document aims to anticipate the problems related to work in warm to hot environments by classifying the different work situations according to their potential health effects, informing the persons concerned (workers and management) of the seriousness of these effects, planning appropriate measures to be implemented to prevent these effects and providing medical surveillance of exposed persons.

This document supports good occupational safety and health practices and is applicable to both indoor and outdoor work situations.