KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — Machines whirred around Siddiqui as her vision blurred and her heart hammered.
asserted
heart → whir → Siddiqui
The garment factory on the outskirts of Karachi was sweltering.
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factory → swelter → Karachi
The room was packed with sweating fellow workers and huge industrial equipment that radiated heat.
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that → pack → heat
The air felt thick with the humidity of this summer’s monsoon.
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air → feel → monsoon
Siddiqui, who The Associated Press is identifying only by surname because she fears retaliation by her employer, felt like she was suffocating.
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she → identify → employer
Concerned co-workers called over her supervisor.
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workers → call → supervisor
“The supervisor said, ‘Just complete this work,’” Siddiqui, 28, told The Associated Press.
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Siddiqui → say → Press
“Suddenly darkness came before my eyes.”
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darkness → come → eyes
Exhausted by the heat, she collapsed.
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she → exhaust → heat
Extreme heat — intensified by climate change — is creating dangerous conditions for factory workers in Pakistan.
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heat → intensify → Pakistan
From blue jeans to homeware, these factories produce goods for global companies that have pledged to protect workers’ safety.
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that → produce → safety
But experts and labor rights advocates say those promises remain unfulfilled, as temperatures rise and workers pay the price with their health and safety.
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workers → say → health
The AP interviewed more than a dozen workers in Karachi, all of whom described scorching workplaces, absent heat protocols and negative health effects, including fainting.
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all → interview → fainting
They spoke on the condition that their identities be protected out of fear of retaliation by their employers.
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identities → speak → employers
All but one said they lost wages when heat-related illness forced them to miss work.
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illness → say → work
Ten of the workers made goods for global brands sold in the United States and Europe.
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Ten → make → States
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This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center.
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story → support → Center
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Workers are exposed to scorching conditions inside factories
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Workers → expose → factories
For workers like Siddiqui, extreme heat — temperatures at or above 32.2 C (90 F) combined with high humidity — isn’t just a workplace hazard.
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heat → combine → humidity
Living with her six children in a small room with no air conditioning on the outskirts of Karachi, temperatures routinely exceed 37.8 C (100 F) during heat waves.
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temperatures → live → waves
Inside the garment factory where she stitches clothes for Spanish brands like Zara and Mango, it’s even hotter.
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it → stitch → Zara
Huge machines churn heat into the air.
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machines → churn → air
There are fans, but they’re often broken or small.
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they → be → ?
Windows are slitlike and set high, or even closed to deter theft, further trapping the heat, workers told AP.
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workers → set → AP
“Smoke, heat, you face it,” said a 34-year-old male factory worker.
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worker → face → it
Health issues and lost wages are common
Extreme heat is a silent killer: It can show few outward symptoms while causing severe internal damage and worsening conditions, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and asthma.
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It → lose → disease
Studies have linked it to dehydration, heatstroke, organ failure and death.
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Studies → link → dehydration
“The longer you work in the heat, the less that you’re protected from it and the health risks rise,” said Andreas Flouris, the founder of FAME Lab, which researches heat’s impact on health.
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which → work → health
The number of people exposed to extreme heat is growing exponentially due to climate change.
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number → expose → change
Heat stress is a leading cause of weather-related deaths, according to the World Health Organization.
uncertain
stress → lead → Organization
Studies by World Weather Attribution say that climate change has also drastically increased the frequency, intensity and risks of extreme heatwaves in Pakistan.
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change → say → Pakistan
Workers interviewed by AP described temporary muscle paralysis, swollen limbs, blood pressure swings, breathing problems, blurred vision and exhaustion that peaked in the hottest months.
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that → interview → months
One worker showed scaly skin rashes on her arms from routine chemical exposure, saying how the pain intensified during summer.
All said they’d seen co-workers faint from the heat.
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workers → show → heat
they’d fainted themselves, some multiple times
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some → faint → ?
Those who fainted were often only offered a short break or sugary drink before being told to resume work.
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who → faint → work
They said complaining to supervisors led to no changes.
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complaining → say → changes
Only one worker had paid sick leave.
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worker → pay → leave
The rest told AP that missed hours — even from fainting on the job or from heat-related illnesses — meant slashed wages.
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hours → tell → wages
Siddiqui wept on the floor of her home as she described fainting and being sent to the hospital.
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she → weep → hospital
Earning 15,000 Pakistani rupees ($54) a month, the hospital visit cost, which her employer refused to pay, left her unable to buy food for her children.
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employer → earn → children
…and 26 more, not listed.
The Aporia
