Congressmember Chu Announces New Federal Protections for Workers Against Heat Stress

The U.S. Department of Labor has unveiled plans to protect workers from heat-related stress and illness under an initiative modeled after a bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Pasadena, earlier this year, Chu’s office announced Monday.

Under the new policy, the Department of Labor will make notice of a new rule-making process to create federal heat standards for workers both indoors and outdoors; begin unannounced inspections at workplaces when temperatures climb above 80 degrees; create a “National Emphasis Program” on heat; and establish a “Heat Work Group” within the National Advisory Board on Labor, the congressmember’s representatives said in a written statement.

“Due to climate change, more workers, both indoors and outdoors, are subject to dangerously high temperatures, including in parts of the country where heat stress has not typically been a problem and therefore not something many employers are prepared for,” according to the statement. “As a result, hundreds have died and thousands injured in recent years.”

The new policy mirrors one proposed by Chu in March when she introduced House Resolution 2193, known as the Asuncion Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatalities Prevention Act, to require the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to develop enforceable, national standards regarding worker exposure to heat, representatives said.

The rules are more important than ever as increasing temperatures due to climate change create greater risk to workers, Chu said.

“This is not just in hot places like Southern California. More and more parts of the country are experiencing record high temperatures that threaten worker safety,” Chu said. “But we can help. Saving a worker’s life can be as simple as requiring breaks for shade and water. But we know that too many employers do not protect their workers unless required to, even when failing to keep workers safe costs the business in lost time.”

The legislation authored by Chu earlier this year was named in memory of Asuncion Valdivia, a farm worker “who needlessly died after working too long in high temperatures without a rest or water break,” according to Chu.

“This bill would require OSHA to implement rules to protect workers from heat stress, which is exactly what the Biden administration has done today,” she continued. “This new process is historic and will unquestionably mean fewer worker deaths while improving productivity.”

Similar policies introduced by Chu and implemented in California have been successful, she added.

“Since then, you can see the impact in things like the ubiquitous shade tents on farms, as well as improved productivity,” Chu said. “I will continue to fight for Congress to pass a comprehensive federal standard, but today I’m grateful to the Biden administration and Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh for responding to our repeated calls for action by beginning this process to protect workers from heat stress.”