OSHA proposes new heat injury and illness prevention standard

The sweltering landscape

On July 2, 2024, OSHA announced a new proposed standard to prevent heat injury and illness in indoor and outdoor work settings.  While there has been a national emphasis program for heat-related hazards since 2022, this rule would create actual requirements for employers to follow under certain temperature conditions.  Previous issues noted with temperature exposure were only cited under OSHA’s General Duty Clause which is the catch-all for hazards that don’t have a specific regulation or standard in place.

It's expected that the new rule will be published in the Federal Register this month but it is still a proposed change for now.  For new regulations, the process is that stakeholders have a comment period of at least 120 days to review the proposed rule before being finalized.  After those comments have been received, OSHA will review the comments, make edits that they feel are necessary, and then publish a final standard.  While there likely will be changes when the final standard is published, below is an outline of the rule as currently proposed.

The new rule will apply to all employers with the following exceptions:

• No work activities where there is a reasonable expectation for employees to be exposed to temperatures of 80 degrees F or higher 
• Work that only has exposure of 15 minutes within an hour period
• Emergency response / fire fighting
• Work activities all performed indoors or in vehicles where air-conditioning consistently keeps the ambient temperature below 80 degrees F
• Telework (employees working from home or a location of their choosing)
• Sedentary activities in indoor work areas with minimal physical exertion (primarily sitting, occasional standing or brief walking, and occasional lifting of objects that weigh less than 10 pounds)

The rule's requirements are broken down into two exposure levels: an initial heat trigger (80 degrees F) and a high heat trigger (90 degrees F).  Once the initial heat trigger of 80 degrees F is met, employers are required to:

• Develop and implement a written work site heat injury and illness prevention plan (HIIPP) that is site-specific.  
  • The HIIPP must include:
    • List of work activities covered by the plan
    • All policies and procedures to comply with the standard  
    • Which heat metric will be used to monitor conditions (heat index or wet bulb globe temperature)
    • Emergency response plan
    • Designation of 1 or more heat safety coordinators with authority to ensure compliance
  • Non-managerial employees must have involvement in the development and implementation of the plan.  
  • The plan must be reviewed and re-evaluated whenever a recordable heat-related illness or injury occurs, or at least annually.
  • The plan must be readily accessible to employees and available in a language that each employee, supervisor, and heat safety coordinator understands.
• Identify heat hazards with a plan for continual monitoring.  This can be done by measuring heat index or using a wet bub globe temperature.  For outdoor work, local heat index forecasts from the National Weather Service can also be used as an option.
• Provide access to potable drinking water that is readily accessible to employees, suitably cool, and enough quantity to allow for 1 quart of water per employee per hour.
• Provide readily accessible break areas that allow for cooling throughout the day.
• Allow and encourage employees to take paid rest breaks if needed.
• Implement one of the following controls for indoor work areas:
  • Increased air movement (fans or comparable natural ventilation) and de-humidification if appropriate.
  • Air-conditioning.
  • Shielding / barriers for radiant heat.
• Create an acclimatization schedule for the first week for new employees or employees returning after being away for more than 14 days.
• Maintain a two-way communication method with employees.
• Provide training for employees and supervisors prior to any work at or above the initial heat trigger.
  • Frequency of the training is at least, annually or if any of the following occurs:
    • Changes in the work site that affects the employee’s exposure
    • Change in policy
    • An indication that the employee has not retained the necessary understanding
    • A recordable heat-related injury or illness occurs
  • All training provided must be in a language and at a literacy level understood by employees with the opportunity for employees to ask questions.

In addition to the above requirements of the initial heat trigger, once a work site is at or above 90 degrees F, the additional high heat trigger requirements must be implemented:

• A minimum of 15-minute paid rest break in the break area at least every two hours.  
  • Meal breaks can count even if unpaid.  
  • Time used to walk to and from the break area or put on / remove PPE cannot count towards the break time.
• A system to observe signs and symptoms of heat-related illness must be implemented.  This can be done through a buddy system, a supervisor or heat safety coordinator (if limited to 20 employees), or through two-communication and consistent contact for lone workers.
• Hazard alerts prior to work or when high heat is triggered to remind employees to drink water, take their required breaks, and how to seek help in an emergency.

What you can do to cool the heat.

If finalized, these requirements must be met at no cost to employees.

While there is still plenty of time between the comment period, edits, and final publication, employers should review their work sites to start collecting data to determine their exposure and potential future requirements under this standard.  Even if the standard is ultimately challenged and not published, the National Emphasis Program for Heat-Related Hazards remains and will continue to be a focus during OSHA inspections.

Some states such as California, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington have already put similar requirements in place as part of their state OSHA plan to mitigate the heat hazards that employees face. Visit OSHA to stay up to date.

For help reviewing your work site's conditions or how these changes could impact your organization, contact an MMA Risk Control Consultant today to discuss.