As record-high temperatures enveloped most of the U.S. earlier this month, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released a proposed rule for comprehensive heat injury and illness prevention. The proposed rule, “Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings,” was many years in the making and would affect employers throughout the United States. In the interim, OSHA and various state regulators that have not already adopted their own laws are issuing citations under Section 5(a)1 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

The proposed rule comes three years after OSHA launched a national emphasis program (NEP) on indoor and outdoor heat-related hazards (read our blog about this here). The 400-plus-page explanation of the rule would require employers, without cost to employees, to:

• develop and implement a site-specific work plan, called a Heat Injury and Illness Prevention Plan (HIIPP), that must include provisions for changing procedures in hot weather;
• designate a heat safety coordinator to “implement and monitor” the HIIPP;
• evaluate heat safety plans, which must be site specific, every year;
• train supervisors, heat safety coordinators and employees on how to identify and treat heat stress and maintain records of that training;
• plan and establish two-way communication by radio or telephone for employees in the field;
• give new employees and those returning from leave time to get used to the heat and provide special oversight to insure they get acclimated; and
• observe new record-keeping requirements in addition to those of the Injury and Illness logs that require records to be kept for a minimum of six months.

The standard will apply when temperatures hit a certain level, with triggers varying depending on how the temperature is measured (e.g., forecasted temperature, heat index, temperature measured at the work site). Furthermore, OSHA’s proposed rule would set an initial “heat trigger” at a heat index of 80°F, at which employers must provide drinking water and break areas that are either shaded or air conditioned; and a “high heat trigger” at 90°F, requiring that employers document the monitoring of employees for signs of heat illness and provide mandatory, paid 15-minute breaks in a cool area every two hours.

OSHA has created a fact sheet for the proposed rule that employers may find helpful.

Many employers already have heat illness prevention plans because a growing number of states (Colorado, California, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington) have adopted heat illness prevention standards. Maryland employers should note that Maryland Occupational Safety and Health (MOSH) has its own proposed standard that would cover both outdoor and indoor work environments. Again, in the interim, General Duty Clause enforcement of adherence to industry standards continues.

Miles & Stockbridge’s labor and employment attorneys are well versed in navigating compliance with OSHA standards and seat stress in the workplace and will be monitoring the progress of OSHA’s proposed heat stress enforcement efforts.

Opinions and conclusions in this post are solely those of the author unless otherwise indicated. The information contained in this blog is general in nature and is not offered and cannot be considered as legal advice for any particular situation. The author has provided the links referenced above for information purposes only and by doing so, does not adopt or incorporate the contents. Any federal tax advice provided in this communication is not intended or written by the author to be used, and cannot be used by the recipient, for the purpose of avoiding penalties which may be imposed on the recipient by the IRS. Please contact the author if you would like to receive written advice in a format which complies with IRS rules and may be relied upon to avoid penalties.

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