“Amid changing climate, the growing frequency and intensity of extreme heat events is increasing the dangers workers face, especially for workers of color who disproportionately work in essential jobs in tough conditions.” “Throughout the nation, millions of workers face serious hazards from high temperatures both outdoors and indoors,” Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said in a news release. 27: OSHA kicks off process for heat workplace standard Ag weighs in on potential OSHA heat injury prevention proposal Indiana moves toward ending protection for isolated wetlands Temperatures were especially high in the Pacific Northwest, where the mercury in late June hit 116 degrees Fahrenheit in Portland, Oregon, for example.ĭaybreak Oct. Large parts of the country have experienced heat waves this summer. Michael Marsh, president and CEO of the National Council of Agricultural Employers, said every NCAE grower-member he has spoken with "already has heat illness prevention protocols established in their Injury, Illness and Prevention Plans so I'm not sure how this will affect them." They may, he said, "have to to tweak those plans for newly regulated temperature determinations depending upon what those may be." The average OSHA rule takes about eight years to develop, and workers can't wait that long given the overheated climate they're currently exposed to."
#Osha stands for vt farms how to#
Thus, these protections, which we hope will consider a variety of risk factors, are urgently needed.”Īs the agency moves forward, Dahl said "it will be critical to draw from the extensive scientific data and information already published on how to best protect workers from heat, as well as begin outreach immediately to those directly affected, so that the rulemaking process can be as swift as possible. We know the lack of a federal heat standard has been detrimental to outdoor workers for far too long - the proof is in the fact that we still have workers dying on the job every year as a result of extreme heat exposure."įor farmworkers, she said "the combination of extreme heat and toxic pesticide exposure is particularly dangerous and being amplified by climate change. UCS Senior Climate Scientist Kristina Dahl said, “It’s great that OSHA is taking action on occupational heat standards. workers from occupational exposure to excessive heat.” Many of the same groups submitted a petition in 2018 “for the first federal standard that would protect outdoor and indoor U.S.
Last month, more than 100 groups including Public Citizen, United Farm Workers, Farmworker Justice, UFW Foundation and the Union of Concerned Scientists, as well as a former head of CalOSHA, petitioned OSHA for an emergency standard on occupational heat, citing, in particular, the risk to farmworkers.
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