Labor Department Moves to Implement Brown’s Plan to Protect Workers From Extreme Heat

Amidst Dangerously High Temperatures, Department of Labor Announces Proposed Rule that Brown Called for Implementing Workplace Heat Protections

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a proposed rule that would implement much of the plan that U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) developed to protect workers from extreme heat on the job. Brown led a bicameral group of colleagues in pushing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to implement a federal workplace heat standard based off of Brown’s Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act which would create a universal heat standard requirement for workers who are threatened by hot working conditions. Excessive heat on the job can cause heat stroke and even death – heat is the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the U.S.

“Ohioans shouldn’t have to risk their health in extreme heat to provide for their families. This will ensure workers have basic, commonsense protections to keep them safe, like water and shade – whether they’re in a hot warehouse or kitchen, or outside on a farm or a construction site,” said Brown. “I will continue pushing OSHA to move forward with national standards and protections to keep workers safe on the job.”

The proposed rule would require employers to develop a plan to prevent heat-related illness and injuries, including:

• adequate hydration;
• paid rest breaks;
• areas for rest breaks that are shaded or cooled;
• medical services and training to address signs and symptoms of heat-related illness; and
• a plan for acclimatization to high-heat work conditions.

Brown has long led efforts to protect workers on the job, including introducing the Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act in 2021, which originally outlined these crucial steps to protect workers from extreme heat. In 2023, Brown led colleagues in calling on OSHA to implement heat standards based on Brown’s legislation.