Delivery workers in Italy have declared a strike, demanding guarantees for both their health and income during the heatwave.

According to reports from Italy's ANSA news agency, labor unions representing delivery workers for food delivery platforms Glovo and Deliveroo are staging strikes across Italy, including in Milan and Florence, on Wednesday, July 15 (local time).

With heatwave warnings issued repeatedly in Italy recently, authorities in some regions, including Milan, have ordered a suspension of food deliveries during the hottest hours of the day.

While these restrictions on outdoor labor are intended to protect the health of workers, they pose a threat to the livelihoods of delivery workers who earn low wages.

The unions are calling for measures that allow workers to work safely without suffering wage losses during heatwaves.

They are demanding a social safety net for delivery workers.

"Delivery workers cannot be the ones to pay the price for climate change," the unions emphasized, adding, "The suspension of deliveries must not lead to economic losses for the workers."

The heatwave has been continuing in Italy throughout this week.

This heatwave, which has hit Europe, was caused by hot air from North Africa becoming trapped over the continent.

It has been dubbed an "omega heat dome" because the arrangement of high pressure and the low-pressure systems blocking it on both sides resembles the Greek letter Ω (omega).

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