by Last week, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) officially published its proposed regulation establishing new workplace standards to prevent heat-related injuries and illnesses. The details of the standard, entitled Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings, were introduced by the agency in July, but the formal publication in the Federal Register was not completed until August 30, 2024. The rule applies to almost all work sectors where OSHA has jurisdiction.
Employer obligations under the rule are triggered when employees are exposed to temperatures of 80 degrees or higher for more than fifteen minutes in any sixty-minute period. The proposed rule requires employers with more than ten employees to:
- Create a written plan to evaluate and control heat hazards in their workplaces.
- Take substantial heat injury-related precautions.
- Monitor employees and the workplace through assigned coordinators with authority to enforce heat safety compliance.
- Provide regular training on heat injury prevention.
- Conduct regular evaluations of the effectiveness of their heat injury prevention plans.
Employer, employee, and stakeholder comments will be accepted through December 30, 2024. For more information, including links to the complete rule and the comment process, see https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/osha/osha20240830.
