The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has recommended the first federal workplace heat standard to safeguard millions of people in America from the health threats connected with exposure to intense heat. Heat is the top reason for death among all harmful weather conditions in the U.S. and prompted about 40 work environment deaths per year from 2011 to 2022. In that time, approximately 33,890 workers did not go to work because of heat-associated injuries and diseases, though the precise number might be considerably greater.
Health-associated injuries, diseases, and deaths are not just related to the weather. People working inside could be subjected to unsafe levels of heat in case their workplace does not have sufficient climate controls, particularly in places that have heat-producers like ranges and furnaces. Certain workers, like women who are pregnant, have an increased risk of exposure to heat and migrant employees will probably be working in places where they are subjected to dangerous temperature levels.
The proposed law calls for companies to create an injury and sickness prevention strategy, assess heat hazards inside and outside work settings, and make sure that action is taken to minimize the potential risks to employees. Those steps include providing drinking water, making sure employees get sufficient rest breaks, and enforcing steps to regulate the inside temperature. Companies should also create a plan to safeguard new and coming back employees who might not be used to working in high-temperature conditions. Employee training should be offered to make sure that they know the heat hazards, and strategies should be designed that can be adopted in case an employee shows signs of health-related sickness. When those signs are noticed, speedy action should be undertaken to help those employees.
In case of a preliminary heat reading of 80°F, companies should offer drinking water, provide a break room inside and outside worksites, acclimatize new and coming back employees, and give paid breaks when necessary. If temperature levels increase beyond the second heat reading of 90°F, companies should provide employees a 15-minute paid rest every two hours and show indicators in places of too much heat.
A notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) will shortly be released in the Federal Register, but an unofficial copy of the NPRM can be read here and OSHA has publicized a fact sheet about the heat standard rulemaking. OSHA likes to get comments from the community regarding the proposed rule as soon as it is publicized in the Federal Register. Once the feedback period ends, OSHA will have a public hearing before the final rule is published. The goal is to release a final rule that ensures certain employees are secured, risks are diminished, and that the steps needed are simple for employers.
Each employee ought to come back home safe and healthful when all is said and done. That is why the Biden-Harris government is taking this important step to safeguard employees from the risks carried by severe heat. As the most pro-employee administration ever, OSHA is ready to make sure that those undertaking a difficult job in our economy’s most important industries are appreciated and protected at work.