A video warned about a brand of “electrolyte freezer pops” that indicates, if you see them on your workplace premises, that you and your co-workers are about to be worked hard.
The video comes from creator Brad Bolinger (@angryirishman1127), and has gotten 434,900 views since going up on TikTok last Thursday. In the clip, the worker calls the Sqwincher-brand frozen popsicles, made with electrolytes, “blue collar pops.”
@angryirishman1127 ♬ original sound – Kody
According to the Sqwincher site, “When you need quick hydration on the job or in the field, reach for the unique frozen solution designed to help you replace what the body sweats out.”
Or, as Brad put it in his TikTok video, “If your job has these popsicles, just know they’re about the work the sh*t out of you.”
The video is similar to a post the Daily Dot covered back in June 2022, in which an Amazon worker showed a freezer at his place of work that was filled with Sqwincher pops.
Their appearance back on the TikTok timeline inspired a number of people to comment.
One commenter shared, “My company gives these out as an attempt to make up for the 16-32 hours of mandatory overtime every week all summer….”
Another worker chimed in about the pops, saying, “We got them. But we work in extreme heat. It’s there to keep us from dying on the job.”
“I work at a freight company,” someone else revealed. “Our freezer is loaded as well.”
One person shared, “They had it last year got rid of them saying it cost too much and spending several million on a machine that can’t cut what we do by hand.”
Though there’s a level of humor attempted about the electrolyte pops, it underscores the dangers of working in heat, especially with the growing concerns about climate change.
According to a U.S. Department of Labor release from May 2022, “From 2011-2019, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 344 worker-related deaths in U.S. were due to environmental heat exposure. Workplace safety experts believe the actual number of heat-related fatalities may be underreported or misreported as another cause, such as heart attacks.”
The release went on to tout the mantra of “Water. Rest. Shade,” as a formula for keeping workers safe in extreme heat. They recommend that companies ensure their workers drink water every 15 minutes, enforce frequent rest breaks in the shade to cool down, have an emergency plan ready to respond when a worker shows signs of heat-related illness, train workers on the hazards on heat exposure, and how to prevent illness, and allow for all workers to build a tolerance for working in the heat.
The release does not specifically mention electrolyte freezer pops for an overheated worker, but an online Hearst publication called Week&, from 2018, noted, “Choosing electrolyte-rich drinks, instead of plain water … can help prevent heat exhaustion,” citing the dangers of losing electrolytes in the heat.
The Daily Dot has reached out to the creator via TikTok comment.