亚洲地区日益频繁的极端高温正在对非正规部门劳动者造成严重冲击。在印度德里地区，约500万人从事非正规经济工作，占该地总劳动力的80%[1]。菲律宾的情况类似，42%的就业人口从事非正规工作[1]。这些工人因高温无法正常工作或生产效率大幅下降，直接导致工资损失和健康状况恶化。
高温对工作时间和收入的影响已成为现实问题。一些工人原本8小时可以完成的任务，在最热月份需要延长至10至12小时[1]。研究预测，气候变暖可能使印度非正规工人的经济损失相当于该国GDP的2%，约合800亿美元[1]。与此同时，极端高温诱发的呼吸系统疾病、胃肠道疾病、中风和肾脏病等健康问题不断增加[1]。
女性非正规工人因需要同时承担工作和家务责任，受热浪冲击的程度更为严重[1]。专家表示，随着温度继续上升，工资损失只会恶化[1]。印度过去十年已成为该国最温暖的十年，经历了更频繁、强烈且持久的热浪事件[1]。
Rising temperatures are increasingly undermining the livelihoods of millions of informal workers across Asian cities, with research suggesting the economic damage could be devastating. In India, climate warming threatens to inflict losses equivalent to 2 percent of the country's GDP—approximately 80 billion dollars—on the informal workforce. [1] The Philippines, where 42 percent of the employed population works in the informal sector, faces similar pressures. [1] In India's Delhi region alone, roughly 5 million people depend on informal economy jobs, representing 80 percent of the local labor force. [1]
The immediate impact on workers is stark and measurable. Tasks that laborers once completed in eight hours now require 10 to 12 hours during the hottest months, directly reducing daily earnings. [1] Health consequences compound the economic strain, with extreme heat driving increases in respiratory diseases, gastrointestinal illness, heat stroke, and kidney disease. [1] Women bear a disproportionate burden, facing both workplace demands and household responsibilities that intensify during heat waves. [1] As Ameena Kidwai stated, "With temperatures continuing to rise, wage losses will only get worse." [1] India has experienced its warmest decade on record over the past ten years, marked by increasingly frequent, intense, and prolonged heat waves. [1]