Outdoor Workers and Extreme Heat Worry

The analysis finds a modest positive correlation between the proportion of outdoor workers and worry about extreme heat at the county level, though this relationship varies by region. While the South and West show positive correlations, the Midwest and Northeast show negative correlations. At the state level, a stronger positive correlation exists. The document also notes a gap between heat worry and the implementation of worker protections, highlighting that some high-worry states like Texas and Florida have blocked local heat safety standards, while California's 2005 standards are linked to a 30% reduction in heat-related injuries.

• At the county level, there is a modest positive correlation (r = 0.18) between the proportion of outdoor workers and the percentage of adults moderately or very worried about extreme heat, but this varies by region: the South (r = 0.13) and West (r = 0.20) show positive correlations, while the Midwest (r = -0.24) and Northeast (r = -0.18) show negative correlations.
• State-level data shows a stronger positive correlation (r = 0.54) between the proportion of outdoor workers and worry about extreme heat.
• There is a misalignment between heat worry and policy protections; for example, Texas and Florida have high levels of worry and large proportions of outdoor workers but have blocked local governments from establishing outdoor worker protections.
• Extreme heat poses significant health and economic risks to the approximately 32 million outdoor workers in the U.S., with potential work disruptions costing these workers $55.4 billion annually by midcentury.

APA

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (2025). Outdoor Workers and Extreme Heat Worry. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/heat-outdoor-workers/

Chicago

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Outdoor Workers and Extreme Heat Worry. 2025. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/heat-outdoor-workers/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Yale Program on Climate Change Communication |title=Outdoor Workers and Extreme Heat Worry |date=5 August 2025 |url=https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/heat-outdoor-workers/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{yaleprogramonclimatechangecommunication2025outdoor, author = {{Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}}, title = {{Outdoor Workers and Extreme Heat Worry}}, institution = {Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}, year = {2025}, month = aug, url = {https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/heat-outdoor-workers/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }