Warming climate could cut labor capacity by 10 percent, study finds

Higher temperatures that are linked to climate change could reduce labor productivity by 10% according to a study by scientists at the  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Researchers looked at military and industrial labor guidelines for heat stress and set them against projections for heat/humidity in the next century. Lead author John Dunne state that “heat stress-related labor capacity losses will double globally by 2050 with a warming climate”.   In a briefing, scientists said the only way to limit these labor productivity losses would be to keep warming to less than 5 deg F.