4. Adapting to climate change

This chapter focuses on how employers are adapting to climate change. We explore whether working practices have been adapted to cope with hotter summers, drought and flooding. A changing climate may also need a rethink of dress codes, uniforms, equipment and shift patterns.

The results show that adapting to climate change is clearly not a priority for large numbers of employers, with a majority of reps reporting that no action had been taken across all the possible initiatives listed.

Of all the measures listed for dealing with climate change and extreme weather conditions, employers were most likely to have a comprehensive plan focusing on planning for floods and storms (18%). However, this still left 41% who had made no provisions at all.

Top five comprehensive schemes for adapting to climate change

They were least likely to be doing anything about changing shift times during hot weather, with 90% of respondents saying nothing had been done in this area compared to only 1% who had introduced a comprehensive scheme. In two-thirds of organisations (68%), no action had been taken on having a maximum indoor temperature trigger compared to the 6% with a comprehensive scheme. Similarly, a majority of employers (67%) had done nothing towards changing equipment or adapting products and services, compared to the small numbers of employers who had adapted their services and support to staff.

Compared to the 2009 LRD survey, there has been a small improvement on the number of new comprehensive schemes introduced. The most significant has been in the planning for floods and storms where there was a 5 percentage point increase in the number of respondents saying a comprehensive scheme was now in place. There was also a 3 percentage point increase in respondents saying their employer was adapting products and services.

Progress has also been made with more employers introducing at least some measures. More employers are recognising the need to take action to deal with maximum indoor working temperatures, with 26% now prepared to take action, up 7 percentage points on 2009. A third of employers (33%, up by 6 percentage points) allow a change of clothing during hot weather and 29% (up 5 percentage points) have some measures in place for changing equipment.

About one in 10 employers offer comprehensive staff training, we found that nearly half (48%) do not provide their staff with advice or training on adapting services or work practices to climate change.