The White House has responded to pressure from lawmakers and advocates by introducing new protections for outdoor workers against extreme heat. President Joe Biden directed the Department of Labor to develop a heat hazard alert system that will educate workers and employers about the dangers of working in high temperatures. The department will also increase workplace inspections and enforcement to ensure employers are safeguarding their workers. While critics argue that the measures are insufficient, Biden assured Americans that help is available and directed them to a government website with resources for dealing with extreme heat.
These actions come as the country experiences historically high temperatures, with nearly half the population, or over 150 million residents, under extreme heat alerts. In response, Democratic Rep. Greg Casar of Texas staged a “thirst strike” to push for the adoption of federal occupational heat safety rules. Biden’s directive serves as a temporary solution while the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) works towards establishing a standard that could make water and rest breaks for outdoor workers a legal requirement. Currently, OSHA’s general duty clause obligates employers to provide a hazard-free workplace, but there are no specific heat-related policies in place, except for in three states: California, Washington, and Minnesota.
OSHA is currently gathering feedback from businesses, local governments, and non-profits to develop the proposed heat standard, although no timeline for finalization has been set. Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su emphasized the urgency of the issue and the impact of high temperatures on workers. Casar and other Democrats praised Biden’s measures as a response to their advocacy efforts.
However, the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health expressed dissatisfaction with the directives, arguing that they are inadequate to protect workers. The council called on Biden to implement an emergency temporary standard, establish a more rigorous permanent threshold for protections, and encourage states to impose their own rules. The Biden administration reports that at least 436 people have died from workplace heat exposure since 2011, in addition to an average of 2,700 cases of heat-related illness each year. Public Citizen, a non-profit consumer advocacy group, estimated that heat exposure leads to at least 600 worker fatalities and 170,000 workplace injuries annually in the U.S.
Casar’s thirst strike also aimed to protest new Texas legislation that would invalidate local laws surpassing state regulations. This legislation includes ordinances in cities like Austin, Dallas, and Houston that require employers to schedule regular water and rest breaks at construction sites and other outdoor workplaces. Additionally, Biden announced funding for water storage and delivery systems in California, Colorado, and Washington, where severe drought conditions persist, and allocated further resources for the development of improved weather forecasting models to provide advanced warnings for extreme weather events.
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