PROVIDENCE – U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., is teaming up with lawmakers and labor unions to establish protections for workers exposed to extreme heat.
The legislation is named after Asunción Valdivia, who died in 2004 from heat stroke after working 10 hours in 105-degree Fahrenheit temperatures.
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The Asunción Valdivia Heat Stress Injury, Illness, and Fatality Prevention Act would require the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to establish enforceable standards for indoor and outdoor workers at risk of heat stress, including paid breaks in cool areas, access to water, emergency protocols for heat-related illnesses, as well as direct employers to provide training and hazard warnings about heat stress in a language and format suitable for their employees.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported that 2024 was the hottest year on record in the United States.
Heat-related illnesses can lead to severe consequences, including cramps, organ damage and death, according to a news release.
From 1992 to 2017, heat stress injuries killed 815 U.S. workers and seriously injured more than 70,000 individuals, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The issue costs U.S. employers nearly $100 billion annually in lost productivity, according to the release.
Roy Houseman, legislative director for the United Steelworkers Union, which represents workers who must wear protective equipment when working in environments where temperatures can reach up to 3,000 degrees, said essential standards for outdoor and indoor workplaces are needed “to ensure that heat illness is the last thing a worker should worry about.”
Congress must strengthen heat protections for workers and set reasonable standards for workers in high-heat environments, Reed said.
“Workers shouldn’t risk death just to do their jobs,” he said.
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.
