Fear of retaliation has left most workers silent, says Climate Rights International. In combination, unsafe working conditions, lack of hydration, and repressive workplace policies create a deadly environment for thousands of workers across Dhaka.

A new report released Tuesday by Climate Rights International (CRI) warns that extreme heat fuelled by the climate emergency is endangering the lives and livelihoods of Bangladesh’s urban workforce, particularly those labouring in garment factories, construction sites, and the transport sector.

The 172-page report, “My Body Is Burning: Extreme Heat and Labor Rights in Bangladesh,” documents harrowing stories of workers collapsing, falling ill, and even dying from heat exposure, often while producing goods for multinational corporations. CRI’s findings lay bare the urgent human cost of climate change intersecting with systemic labour rights abuses in one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries.

CRI’s press release says, “Inside garment factories, on construction sites, and in the middle of city streets, workers are fainting, falling ill, and even dying in extreme temperatures, with little protection from the government, employers, or the multinational corporations that profit from their labour.”

“The clothes we wear every day, including the ones you’re wearing right now, may have been sewn by someone who collapsed or lost consciousness on the job, cried from exhaustion, or suffered long-term health consequences from working in an unbearably hot and humid factory without access to cooling or safe drinking water for hydration,” said Brad Adams, Executive Director at Climate Rights International. “Clothing brands and the factories that supply them need to take urgent steps to provide additional breaks, access to cooling, and hydration.”

Climate Rights International interviewed over 50 workers across three of the most heat-exposed industries in Dhaka, all of whom described suffering from a range of heat-related health problems – including dehydration, itchiness, headaches, fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, muscle cramps, loss of muscle control, temporary vision loss, chest pain, heart palpitations, and loss of consciousness. 

Though China, the US, Gulf States, and European countries are primarily responsible for the emissions that have fuelled the climate crisis, Bangladesh is among the countries hardest hit by its impacts. The capital, Dhaka, is uniquely vulnerable to heat impacts and has experienced record-breaking temperatures in recent years. In 2025, the heat index in Dhaka reached almost 48°C (around 118°F), triggering a city-wide health advisory. 

“Bangladesh is being hit hard by extreme heat resulting from a climate emergency it did almost nothing to cause,” said Adams. “This crisis is being driven by the relentless greenhouse gas pollution of wealthy, industrialized countries, and fossil fuel companies – while frontline communities, including those in international supply chains, are left to suffer, with the fewest resources to cope. This is climate injustice in a nutshell.”

Labour Rights Abuses

For many of Dhaka’s workers, avoiding the heat isn’t an option. Climate Rights International found that many workers were forced to continue their jobs in extreme conditions. Most workers interviewed had either fainted in the heat themselves or witnessed a colleague collapse on the job. Several workers reported losing consciousness more than once. Some workers had even watched colleagues die in the heat. 

Workers suffered mentally and emotionally in the extreme temperatures, reporting feelings of confusion, desperation, hopelessness, and anxiety – some crying while at work. Several shared that they believed they might die on the job. Climate Rights International found that these impacts often resulted in productivity losses, as workers reported moving and working more slowly in the heat, with some needing to work as much as 50 percent more time to complete tasks during the hot season. Others had to cut shifts short due to heat-related illness, forfeiting pay they couldn’t afford to lose.

The harms of occupational heat exposure are being made worse by systemic labour rights abuses, many of which limit workers’ ability to protect themselves from the heat. CRI documented numerous reports of forced and unpaid overtime; denial of breaks, even in extremely hot conditions; and verbal abuse and threats in response to slowing down or attempting to rest as a result of heat exhaustion or related illness. 

Many workers lacked access to toilets at their worksites, experienced pressures not to use the bathroom frequently, or feared that the water supply at work was unsafe. These challenges led some workers to deliberately restrict their water intake so as not to have to use the bathroom as frequently, leading to dehydration, urinary tract infections, and increasing their risk of other, more severe heat-related health issues. 

Workers told CRI that they were afraid to speak up about these abuses, and about their suffering in the heat, for fear of retaliation.

In combination, these abuses left workers with limited options to protect themselves from extreme temperatures and ultimately compounded the safety risks of the heat, Climate Rights International said. Without the implementation of effective workplace adaptation measures, heat exposure will continue to make already dangerous working conditions worse, compounding vulnerabilities for Dhaka’s workers. 

Lack of Corporate Accountability

Multinational corporations play a part in these conditions. Some international clothing brands that source from Bangladesh continue to demand short production timelines and low prices, pushing factories to overwork employees with little regard for conditions on the ground. Almost none take effective steps to ensure their suppliers protect workers from the risks of extreme heat.

A small number of companies, including VF Corporation, the parent company of major brands like The North Face, Vans, and Timberland, have embedded heat protections into their supplier codes of conduct. Yet even in supply chains where some heat-protections are mandated by a code of conduct, it is clear that additional efforts are needed, and that enforcement must be tightened. CRI spoke with workers who claimed their factories supplied a number of brands, including VF, H&M, C&A, Walmart, Primark, and New Look, that are taking at least some steps intended to protect workers from hot workplace conditions. All of those workers told CRI that, despite the measures brands are taking, they continue to suffer in the heat.  

Gig and Construction Workers

Meanwhile, app delivery platforms operating in Dhaka provide few protections for gig workers, who bike long distances and carry heavy loads through peak heat conditions in exchange for poverty wages and limited benefits. CRI spoke with workers from foodpanda, a subsidiary of Delivery Hero, who described the physical, emotional, and financial hardship of delivery work in extreme heat conditions. Construction companies in the city are similarly failing to protect workers from rising temperatures, and failing to provide safe water and bathroom access at job sites, making it practically impossible for workers to stay properly hydrated at work.