OSHA proposes first-ever rule to address employee heat exposure

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) couldn’t have timed the weather for its proposal for a federal rule to reduce heat injury and illness better—in the midst of July heat waves across the U.S.  But timing isn’t everything and certainly isn’t a guarantee that the proposal will become a final, effective rule. The proposal already faces opposition from many Republicans and employers who would be subject to the proposed standards.

OSHA’s proposed rule on “Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings” would establish a federal heat standard to protect employees in indoor and outdoor working conditions.  OSHA states that there was an average of 40 heat-related fatalities per year across the U.S. from 2011-2022 and an average of 3,389 work-related heat injuries and illnesses per year in that same period.  The agency believes that those numbers are likely significantly underestimated.

The proposed rule would apply to “all employers conducting outdoor and indoor work in all general industry, construction, maritime, and agriculture sectors where OSHA has jurisdiction.” OSHA does not have jurisdiction over agricultural employers with 10 or fewer employees, so smaller-scale farms and agribusinesses would be exempt from the rule. Generally, employers subject to the rule would have to assess their working conditions and develop and implement a “heat injury and illness prevention plan” that assesses and manages heat hazards in their workplaces.

Specifically, the proposed standard would require employers to:

• Identify heat hazards in outdoor and indoor work sites;
  • For outdoor work sites, employers would have to monitor the heat at the site by tracking local heat index forecasts or measuring the heat index and temperature;
  • For indoor work sites, employers would have to identify work areas with the potential for hazardous heat exposure and implement a monitoring plan
• Implement control measures at or above an Initial Heat Trigger (heat index of 80°F) that includes providing employees with effective two-way communication, cool drinking water, break areas with cooling measures, indoor work area controls, acclimatization protocols for new and returning unacclimatized employees, and paid rest breaks if needed to prevent overheating.
• Implement additional control measures at the High Heat Trigger level (heat index of 90°F) that include providing employees with a hazard alert and mandatory rest breaks of 15 minutes every two hours and observing employees for signs and symptoms of heat-related illness.
• Provide training, have procedures to respond if a worker is experiencing signs and symptoms of a heat-related illness, and take immediate action to help a worker experiencing signs and symptoms of a heat emergency.

OSHA’s announcement on the Heat Injury and Illness Prevention rule is on the agency’s website at https://www.osha.gov/heat-exposure/rulemaking.  Comments to the proposal can begin after the official proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, which should be soon.  To understand the rulemaking process and how to submit comments on a proposed rule, visit this OSHA site.