Brickmakers in Pakistan endure extreme heat amid climate‑driven risks, as industry pledges minimal breaks.

Workers at a brick kiln in Sheikhupura district crush coal into a furnace that reaches over 1,000 °C. The hot surface stands under a blazing sun that also heats them from above. Abid Hussain, 35, told AFP that he feels “trapped between fire below and, increasingly, above.” He said he has no choice but to keep working because of debt that forces him to stay in danger. The construction boom in Pakistan keeps workers on a daily wage of about $3. Hussain earns roughly 25,000 rupees a month, which he says barely covers rent and his children’s basic needs. Syeda Ghulam Fatima, general secretary of the Bonded Labour Liberation Front, said the kilns are places of confinement. Workers endure relentless heat from the sun and the kiln’s radiation, and she warned that rising global temperatures amplify the risks. Pakistan’s fire‑heated brick industry runs more than 18,000 kilns that employ over a million people, according to a 2018 Climate and Clean Air Coalition report. Many workers receive advance payments and cannot refuse dangerous work without falling into debt. The Punjab provincial government is urging a shift to zigzag kilns that reduce air pollution and lower heat exposure. Health experts note that traditional kilns can cause skin disorders, respiratory problems and kidney disease. Supervisor Mujeeb Ullah, 45, explained that rest breaks are not feasible because temperatures must remain stable, though workers receive drinking water and short breaks. Worker Muhammad Azeem, 28, said, “Work is work, it has to be done,” pointing to the lack of alternatives.