Sentivo HSE ConsultancyOctober 2026  |  Issue 01

SentivoSafety Brief

Verified QHSE news for Saudi Arabia and the GCC, with what it means on site.

Saudi Arabia

The 2026 midday work ban ends with 95% compliance

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) and the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (NCOSH) have closed this year's ban on outdoor work in direct sunlight. It applied to private-sector establishments from 12:00 to 15:00 daily, between 15 June and 15 September 2026.

29,945inspection visits across the Kingdom
95%compliance rate, up from 94% in 2025
1,771violations recorded
41public reports handled

Alongside enforcement, NCOSH published more than 168 awareness materials in seven languages, and over 4,000 people took part in the accompanying programmes.

The most useful line in the closing statement is the least headline-friendly one: the Ministry and the Council stressed that the end of the ban does not end an employer's duty to prevent heat stress. Risk assessment and heat controls are expected all year round.

What to do on site now

  • Keep water, shade and rest arrangements in place for as long as your heat assessment says they are needed — not until a calendar date.
  • Re-acclimatise workers returning from leave. Heat tolerance built up over summer can fade after a week or two away from the heat.
  • Use MHRSD's two published guides — the procedural guide on sunlight exposure and the advisory guide on working in hot environments — as the basis for your heat plan.

How the GCC heat rules compared this summer

Hours when outdoor work under direct sunlight was prohibited, 2026 season. Other GCC states set their own windows — check local rules.

Saudi ArabiaMHRSD / NCOSH
15 Jun – 15 SepPrivate sector, direct sunlight
UAEMoHRE
15 Jun – 15 Sep22nd consecutive year
QatarMinistry of Labour
1 Jun – 15 SepPlus a stop-work trigger at WBGT 32.1 °C at any hour

Outdoor work under direct sunlight prohibited

Qatar's rules, set by Ministerial Decision No. 17 of 2021, go furthest: the longest daily window, an earlier start date, and a heat-index trigger. Work must stop whenever the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) reaches 32.1 °C, whatever the clock says. That is the approach explained in this issue's technical focus below.

Standards update

ISO 9001:2026 is out. ISO 45001 is not — yet.

ISO published the sixth edition of its quality standard on 16 September 2026. It keeps the familiar structure, with clearer requirements and a stronger focus on leadership and quality culture. Here is where the three management-system standards most QHSE teams work with now stand.

StandardStatusWhat it means for you
ISO 90012026 edition publishedPublished 16 Sep 2026. Certification bodies expect a transition period of about three years. Agree your upgrade audit date with yours.
ISO 140012026 edition publishedReleased earlier in 2026, also with an expected three-year transition. Start a gap analysis if you are certified.
ISO 45001Draft (DIS) stageISO 45001:2018, including Amendment 1:2024 on climate action, remains the current standard. The revised edition is expected in 2027.

Proposed changes in the ISO 45001 draft include more emphasis on work-related well-being, greater attention to workforce diversity, and broader hazard identification for modern ways of working. These are draft proposals, and they can still change before publication.

Watch out: there is no "ISO 45001:2026". Be cautious of training, templates or audits sold as meeting it. Until the new edition is published, ISO 45001:2018 is the standard you are audited against.

Incident lesson

The trench that was never supported

A UK court sentenced two contractors and a manager this month over a trench collapse. Six years on from the incident, the lesson is one every GCC utility and infrastructure site will recognise.

In June 2020 a 33-year-old worker was replacing a damaged pipe at the bottom of a deep trench in Surrey, clearing soil by hand. The trench had no support, and excavated soil had been piled right at its edge. The walls collapsed without warning, burying him under about two tonnes of soil. He died at the scene.

What was missingAny trench support, and a clear zone at the edge
Who knewA contracts manager had seen another worker in the same unsupported trench earlier that day
CompaniesPrincipal contractor fined £500,000; subcontractor fined £650,000 plus £40,000 costs
IndividualThe manager received a 10-month suspended sentence and 150 hours' unpaid work

Lessons for your sites

  • No support, no entry. "Quick" jobs such as fixing a pipe or retrieving a tool are exactly when trenches kill. Collapse gives no warning.
  • Spoil is a load. Soil piled at the edge adds weight to the wall that is most likely to fail.
  • Seeing it and not stopping it is a failure. The manager was prosecuted personally for failing to act on an unsafe trench he had seen.
  • Principal contractors own the outcome too. Both the principal contractor and the subcontractor were convicted.

Also from recent UK cases

A damaged guard became a doorway

A fish processor was fined £420,000 after a supervisor removed a loose fence panel to clear a blockage and the machine restarted, causing life-threatening injuries. The interlocked gate had been damaged by a forklift months earlier and never properly repaired. A damaged guard is a defect to fix at once, not a workaround.

An unplanned lift, a 1.2-tonne crate

A manufacturer was fined £230,000 plus £111,000 costs after a crate fell from a forklift onto a delivery driver. No one had assessed whether the truck suited the load or who should do what. Non-standard deliveries need a lift plan, just as crane lifts do.

Technical focus

Heat stress after 15 September: why the thermometer isn't enough

Air temperature tells you only part of the story. The body also feels humidity (which slows the cooling effect of sweat), radiant heat from the sun and hot surfaces, and air movement. A humid coastal afternoon can put more strain on a worker than a hotter but drier day inland.

The Wet Bulb Globe Temperature combines all four. It is defined in ISO 7243 and is the measure Qatar uses as its stop-work trigger. For outdoor work in sunlight it combines three readings, each weighted differently:

The three readings inside a WBGT meter A black globe thermometer measures radiant heat and counts for 20 percent. A natural wet-bulb sensor measures humidity and air movement and counts for 70 percent. A shielded dry-bulb measures air temperature and counts for 10 percent. Globe radiant heat from sun and surfaces Natural wet-bulb humidity and air movement Dry-bulb shaded air temperature 20% 70% 10% Share of the outdoor WBGT value (ISO 7243)
Illustration: Sentivo. A WBGT meter takes three readings and weights them; the wet-bulb reading dominates.
WBGT = 0.7 × natural wet-bulb + 0.2 × globe + 0.1 × dry-bulb The natural wet-bulb reading, driven by humidity and air movement, carries 70% of the weight — which is why a humid day can be more dangerous than a hotter, drier one.

Heat stroke is a medical emergency, and it can happen outside the summer ban. Every supervisor should know these signs and this response.

Recognise heat stroke

  • Confusion, slurred speech or odd behaviour
  • Collapse, fainting or seizures
  • Very high body temperature — the skin may be hot and dry, or still sweating

Act immediately

  • Call for emergency medical help
  • Move the worker to shade and remove excess clothing
  • Cool fast: cold water, wet cloths, ice packs and fanning
  • Don't give drinks unless they are fully alert

Toolbox talk

Before anyone enters a trench

Five checks for a pre-start briefing. Figures are from US OSHA's excavation standard (29 CFR 1926 Subpart P), a widely used benchmark. Where your project specification or local code is stricter, follow that.

Cross-section of a protected trench A worker stands inside a steel trench box. A ladder rises about one metre above ground level, spoil is piled well back from the edge, and a barrier protects the open edge. ≥ 0.6 m Edge barrier Trench box or shoringprotects to full depth Ladder extends about 1 mabove the edge Spoil set backfurther for heavy plant Services locatedbefore digging
Illustration: Sentivo. A protected trench: full-depth support, a ladder that extends above the edge, spoil kept back and an edge barrier.
  • Protection is in place. The trench is sloped, benched, shored or boxed as designed. Collapse can happen at any depth; OSHA requires a protective system from 1.5 m (5 ft) unless the trench is in stable rock.OSHA 1926.652(a)(1)
  • Spoil and materials are set back. At least 0.6 m (2 ft) from the edge, and further for heavy plant.OSHA 1926.651(j)(2)
  • A competent person has inspected it today. Before each shift, and again after rain or anything else that could affect stability.OSHA 1926.651(k)(1)
  • There is a way out. A ladder, ramp or steps within 7.6 m (25 ft) of every worker in trenches 1.2 m (4 ft) deep or more.OSHA 1926.651(c)(2)
  • The air has been tested where it could be unsafe. Near sewers, fuel lines, landfill or exhaust from plant, test for low oxygen and hazardous gases before entry.OSHA 1926.651(g)

Sources

All sources checked on 23 September 2026.

  1. Arab News, "Saudi Arabia ends 2026 midday work ban", 15 Sep 2026 — arabnews.com
  2. Sobra News (Arabic), MHRSD closing figures for the 2026 sunlight ban, Sep 2026 — sobranews.com
  3. Saudi Press Agency, "Midday Outdoor Work Ban Begins June 15", 15 Jun 2026 — spa.gov.sa
  4. Saudi Press Agency, MHRSD guides on sunlight exposure and hot environments, 9 Jun 2025 — spa.gov.sa
  5. Gulf Business (WAM report), UAE midday break returns for its 22nd year, 8 Jun 2026 — gulfbusiness.com
  6. The Peninsula Qatar, regulated outdoor summer working hours from 1 June, 31 May 2026 — thepeninsulaqatar.com
  7. QIC, "Q&A: 2026 Summer Working Hours in Qatar" (WBGT thresholds), 8 Jun 2026 — qic.online
  8. ISO, launch of ISO 9001:2026, 16 Sep 2026 — iso.org
  9. DNV, "Draft Version of ISO 45001:2027 Released", Jul 2026 — dnv.com
  10. DQS, ISO 45001 revision at a glance, Jun 2026 — dqsglobal.com
  11. CertFast, ISO 45001 revision update (ISO 14001:2026 publication), Apr 2026 — certfast.com
  12. UK Health and Safety Executive, press releases for September 2026 (trench collapse, interlock bypass, forklift unloading) — press.hse.gov.uk
  13. US OSHA, 29 CFR 1926.651 Specific excavation requirements — osha.gov
  14. US OSHA, 29 CFR 1926.652 Requirements for protective systems — osha.gov
  15. ISO 7243:2017, Ergonomics of the thermal environment — Assessment of heat stress using the WBGT index
© 2026 Sentivo HSE Consultancy. This brief summarises public information for awareness only. It is not legal advice — always check the current text of a regulation or standard before relying on it.