Why Heat Is Becoming One of the Biggest Threats to Garment Workers

Garment workers are already under pressure to meet fast deadlines for fast fashion. In many factories, indoor heat rises beyond 35 °C and sometimes touches 40 °C. Conditions get worse when humidity hangs in the air, mixed with steam from irons and machines running nonstop. We still have to remind the fashion industry that we are moving into 2026 and that basic human needs are not optional. They are the bare minimum and a fundamental human right.

Workers, often women, spend long shifts in that intense heat doing these demanding tasks. A recent study of ready-made garment factories shows that this kind of heat stress is no longer rare. It is increasing as global temperatures rise.

Someone sewing or ironing clothes in a hall where air barely moves, fans are few or absent, and water is scarce is not okay, yet that is the reality many face. Would you work in a place for 10-12 hours without even a fan? 

Researchers surveying 753 female garment workers in tropical Cambodia found that during the hot months, 88 percent reported heat-related symptoms such as heavy sweating, intense thirst and feeling unbearably hot, compared with 68 percent in cooler months. More than two out of three said that heat reduced their motivation and slowed their work.

Garment workers face serious heat risks inside factories when temperatures rise above safe limits. Long hours in hot, poorly ventilated rooms can cause heat stress, heat exhaustion and even heat stroke, conditions that make workers dizzy and nauseous. Research by the International Labour Organization notes that dehydration becomes common when people sweat for hours without enough drinking water or breaks. 

When the body is under heat stress, it goes into survival mode. In one study, more than three-quarters of workers said they fell ill because of increased heat at work. Many factories did not offer cooling, sick leave or proper medical care.

Most of the workers feel they cannot take breaks. Many skip rest to meet piece-rate quotas. When you work this way every day, exhaustion becomes normal. For many, sickness is not an option. Falling behind is not an option.

Installing reflective insulated roofs, improving ventilation, running fans, providing guaranteed access to drinking water and allowing rest breaks are basic measures to make work safer under such heat.

Heat risks are a long-term workplace threat. The people who make our clothes cannot be expected to bear the full weight of a changing climate. This issue is not widely discussed in the sea of other concerns. If brands can move fast for profit, they can move faster for safety.

So the next time you pick a shirt from a rack, think about where it was made and under what conditions it was stitched. We cannot shop our way out of this because it is a climate problem, and a human problem, but we can ask better questions and demand real transparency.