How well are Malaysia’s outdoor workers protected during the upcoming ‘Super El Niño’?

Malaysia is expected to face some of its highest temperatures on record amid one of the most severe El Niño climate phenomenons in recent history, combined with the impact of human-induced climate change. Yet for workers who spend the bulk of their days outdoors and are regularly exposed to the heat, there is little to suggest the demands of their work will change.

Salim Khan, who has been as a subcontractor in Malaysia’s construction sector for the last 12 years as part of a small firm specialising in roadworks, says that he has not felt a significant increase in heat over the past decade and views the heat as having been manageable.

“Sometimes it gets very hot, sometimes it rains – [the weather] has been the same,” he told Eco-Business on a work site in Subang Jaya, a suburb in Malaysia’s most populous state of Selangor. Average temperatures at noon can range from 32ºC to 34ºC, he said, consistent with data recorded by Malaysia’s Meteorological Department, MetMalaysia.

But Malaysia is about to face a stronger El Niño in the coming months, a cyclical climate phenomenon characterised by warmer sea-surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean and causes above average temperatures globally. Although there is no evidence that climate change increases the frequency or intensity of El Niño events, the World Meteorological Organisation says it can amplify its impacts.

In Southeast Asia, the El Niño phenomenon is marked by lower rainfall and increased temperatures, raising the risk of heat stress and heat-related illnesses for outdoor workers. In Malaysia, these workers span the construction, agriculture and plantations, logistics, manufacturing, as well as food and parcel delivery rides, locally referred to as parcel-hailing or p-hailing.

In Southeast Asia, the El Niño phenomenon is marked by lower rainfall and increased temperatures, raising the risk of heat stress and heat-related illnesses for outdoor workers. Image: Pok Rie/Pexels

MetMalaysia, which said that the current cycle is expected to strengthen in the coming months, has told newswire Reuters that this could result in Malaysia experiencing record high temperatures between March and May 2027.

“Current projections further indicate that this event may strengthen to a strong or even ‘Super’ El Niño during the period from October to December 2026,” MetMalaysia said in a 13 July fact sheet.

According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), nearly 74 per cent of Asia Pacific’s working population is already exposed to excessive heat.

“Workers may face severe health impacts in [both] short and long term, including dehydration, kidney injury, heatstroke, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases,” said Wong Yan Ke, Regional Campaign Officer for climate and forestry at Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI), a non-profit advocating for workers’ rights and protection.

“Extreme heat may also worsen chronic conditions like diabetes and asthma. It also raises the concerns of workers’ safety, especially dehydration and loss of focus and concentration may increase the risks of workplace accidents,” said Wong, citing the World Health Organisation (WHO) and ILO.

No significant trend

Malaysians have already experienced the negative impacts of heatwaves in recent months, even before the onset of the current El Niño event. In March 2026, MetMalaysia issued a Level 2 heatwave warning for three states in northern Peninsular Malaysia as maximum daily temperatures averaged between 37°C and 40°C for at least three consecutive days.

As of early July, the country has recorded 73 cases of heat-related illnesses and four deaths, according to its Health Ministry. Quoting the ministry’s disease control division public health specialist, local media reported that 59 of those cases involved heat exhaustion, with six being exertional heat stroke and four cases of classical heat stroke. 

Local governments have already launched several initiatives to address urban heat and in some sectors, the impact it has had on workers. For example, the Kuala Lumpur City Council launched in July a rest stop for food and parcel delivery riders. This follows similar rest stops having been established under the Teduh initiative by the Selangor state government in several major townships in the suburbs of Subang Jaya.

Yet there is limited information on how many workers across Malaysia are exposed to heat and the likelihood of heat-related illnesses.

“We get fevers, but only sometimes,” said Salim, adding that he has not seen heat-related illnesses become more frequent over the years. He and his colleagues say they recover from such fevers on their own within two to three days after taking medication.

In the case of accidents or more extreme illnesses, Salim said that his employer would ensure that workers are treated at the hospital, but these incidents were not necessarily related to heat stress.

Malaysia’s Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) told Eco-Business that it does not currently maintain specific national data on the number of workers exposed to or at risk of heat stress in Malaysia, but has recorded a total of eight cases of occupational heat stress over a nine-year period between 2017 and 2025. 

“The number of reported cases has remained relatively low and has not shown a significant increasing trend over this period,” said DOSH’s Director General Hazlina Yon in a written interview.

However, this does not mean that heat stress is not a significant occupational risk, she added. As a preventable workplace hazard, its frequency depends largely on whether workplace risk assessments and control measures are effective.

“Employers should continue to assess heat stress risks and implement appropriate engineering controls, administrative controls and other preventive measures to protect workers,” said Hazlina. This includes the use of personal protective equipment where appropriate.

As of early July, Malaysia has recorded 73 cases of heat-related illnesses and four deaths, according to its Health Ministry. Image: Melanie Lim on Unsplash

Call for mandatory work stoppages

Labour rights advocates believe that to step up protection for vulnerable workers, Malaysia should introduce new regulations or laws that explicitly address the dangers of extreme heat. 

Across Asia Pacific, only a few countries have implemented mandatory work stoppages or breaks when daily temperatures exceed certain thresholds. In China, outdoor work must be suspended when the daily maximum temperature reaches 40ºC, while in Singapore, a 2023 law mandates 10-minute rest breaks at 32ºC, and 15-minute breaks at 33ºC.

On 30 March, the Malaysian affiliates of BWI, which comprised labour unions across the forestry and construction sectors, had issued a statement calling for the government to recognise extreme heat as a deadly occupational health hazard by law, as well as to require work breaks when temperature risks reach critically high levels. The affiliates included the Malay Forest Officers Union, Sabah Timber Industry Employees Union, Union of Forestry Employees Sarawak, Timber Employees Union of Peninsular Malaysia, as well as the Union of Healthcare Assistants in Sarawak.

“We commend the initiative and efforts of the DOSH in publishing the 2016 Guidelines on Heat Stress Management at the Workplace. However, it remains merely advisory and lacks legal enforceability. In other words, compliance remains voluntary and leaves workers unprotected,” the statement said.

Wong said that there is also limited relief available to workers in Malaysia experiencing broader symptoms of heat-related illness. 

“Even though heat-related diseases are listed as occupational diseases under Fifth Schedule of Employees’ Social Security Act… the current list is only limited to heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat syncope [which involves fainting or dizziness], heat stroke and cataracts,” Wong told Eco-Business. This means that other heat-related diseases identified by the WHO and ILO are not eligible for relief from Malaysia’s government-backed Social Security Organisation (SOCSO).

Wong also suggested that the government train more occupational health doctors to check and trace whether illnesses were linked to heat exposure in workplace, although “a heat protection plan is always better than the remedies,” he added

“The government needs to work fast to mandate work stoppages during extreme heat and facilitate the workplace adaption plans for heat,” said Wong.

Labour rights advocates believe that to step up protection for vulnerable workers, Malaysia should introduce new regulations or laws that explicitly address the dangers of extreme heat. Image: Muhammad Faiz Zulkeflee on Unsplash

No new regulations

When asked if any updated guidelines or regulations are being prepared to help keep workers safe from the heat, Malaysia’s DOSH said that instead of introducing new regulations or guidelines, its priority in the near term is to strengthen the implementation and enforcement of existing legal requirements.

The country’s existing occupational safety and health laws, coupled with the 2016 guidelines, provides an adequate framework for employers to manage heat stress risks through a risk-based approach, according to Hazlina.

“Workers’ protection against heat stress risks, including outdoor workers exposed to high temperatures for prolonged periods, is currently provided [for] under the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 [Act 514],” she told Eco-Business.

Under Section 15 of the Act, employers have a duty to ensure the safety, health and welfare of their employees. 

“This duty is further reinforced under Section 18B, which requires employers to conduct risk assessments and implement appropriate risk control measures,” Hazlina added.

The Guidelines on Heat Stress Management at Workplace 2016, meanwhile, serve as a “technical reference” for employers to identify, assess and control heat stress risks in the workplace, she said.

Recommended control measures in the guidelines include engineering controls such as cooling areas and adequate ventilation, as well as administrative controls, which include establishing emergency procedures, work-rest regimes and regular hydration intake. 

Coupled with the Act, the guidelines provide employers the “flexibility to implement proportionate measures” based on specific workplace conditions, said Hazlina.

The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) took a similar perspective, recommending that policymakers “carefully assess” whether existing laws, guidelines and industry standards on heat protection for workers are being effectively implemented and enforced, before any stricter mandatory regulations are introduced.

“The primary challenge may not necessarily be the absence of regulations, but rather the level of awareness, compliance, monitoring, and practical implementation at workplace level,” MEF President Dr Syed Hussein Syed Husman told Eco-Business.

“Introducing overly prescriptive requirements without considering operational realities could create unintended difficulties, particularly for small and medium enterprises and sectors where work schedules are heavily influenced by project timelines, weather conditions, and customer demands,” Syed Hussein said. “A one-size-fits-all approach [in terms of regulations] may not be suitable given the diversity of industries and working conditions in Malaysia.”

Across Asia Pacific, only a few countries have implemented mandatory work stoppages or breaks when daily temperatures exceed certain thresholds. Image: KC Shum on Unsplash

Hydration and other solutions

Still, MEF is aware of the forecasts regarding prolonged periods of high temperatures associated with climate phenomena such as El Niño. 

“Many employers, particularly those in sectors that rely heavily on outdoor work such as construction, plantations, agriculture, logistics, utilities, and infrastructure maintenance, have become increasingly conscious of the operational and occupational safety implications of extreme heat,” said Syed Hussein.

Linking the severity of heat-related illnesses directly to incremental outdoor temperature rises, such as from 30.5°C to 40°C, requires “cautious interpretation”, said Dr Rosnah Ismail, Professor of Occupational Health and Public Health Specialist at the National University of Malaysia’s Department of Public Health Medicine, Faculty of Medicine.

“Individual preventive behaviours act as crucial moderating factors between extreme heat exposure and actual illness,” she told Eco-Business.

Rosnah had previously conducted research into the impact of hydration practices among municipal workers in Negeri Sembilan, a neighbouring state of Peninsular Malaysia’s populous Selangor. Conducted in 2016 at the tail end of an earlier El Niño phenomenon, the study found that workers who practiced irregular drinking patterns and sweetened beverages were more likely to experience moderate to severe heat-related illnesses. 

“Observations across various Malaysian industries show that scheduled hydration breaks and access to free-flow water are widely practised for outdoor workers,” she said in a written interview. 

However, the core challenge lies in how regularly workers choose to take these breaks and what they decide to drink, Rosnah added.

“Many workers, particularly young adults, rely on thirst as a signal to drink water. However, waiting to feel thirsty is a reactive and inadequate strategy,” Rosnah said. “Thirst is a delayed indicator of dehydration: by the time the brain triggers the sensation, the body has already lost 1-2 per cent of its normal fluid volume.”

This fluid loss of just 2 per cent could impair essential physiological functions, while a 3 per cent loss increases the risk of severe muscle cramps and exertional heatstroke.

Sugar-sweetened beverages are also a popular but unsuitable choice to combat dehydration, Rosnah said, arguing that heat safety policies must go beyond enforcing water breaks to ensure that plain water is consumed to protect outdoor workers effectively.

Emphasising that employers have a duty of care to provide safe and healthy working environments for all their employees, MEF said that room for improvement remains in terms of  consistency, monitoring, training, and enforcement of heat protection measures for workers in Malaysian workplaces. 

“As climate conditions become increasingly unpredictable, employers need to adopt proactive heat stress management measures rather than merely reacting to incidents,” Syed Hussein said.

The project received support from the Thomson Reuters Foundation as part of its global work aiming to strengthen free, fair and informed societies. Any financial assistance or support provided to the journalist has no editorial influence. The content of this article belongs solely to the author and is not endorsed by or associated with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, Thomson Reuters, Reuters, nor any other affiliates.