<
https://grist.org/labor/federal-workplace-heat-protections-osha-temperature-regulation-trump-farmworkers/>
"Last summer, the United States took a crucial step towards protecting millions
of workers across the country from the impacts of extreme heat on the job. In
July 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA,
published its first-ever draft rule to prevent heat illness in the U.S.
workforce. Among other things, the proposed regulation would require employers
to provide access to water, shade, and paid breaks during heat waves — which
are becoming increasingly common due to human-caused climate change. A senior
White House official at the time called the provisions “common sense.”
Before the Biden administration could finalize the rule, Donald Trump was
reelected president, ushering in another era of deregulation. Earlier this
month, the Trump administration announced plans to revise or repeal 63
workplace regulations that Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer said “stifle
growth and limit opportunity.”
OSHA’s heat stress rule wasn’t among them. And though the new administration
has the power to withdraw the draft regulation, it hasn’t. Instead, OSHA has
continued to move it forward: The agency is currently in the middle of
soliciting input from the general public about the proposed policy. Some labor
experts say this process, typically bureaucratic and onerous even in the
absence of political interference, is moving along faster than expected —
perhaps a sign that civil servants at OSHA feel a true sense of urgency to
protect vulnerable workers from heat stress as yearly temperatures set record
after record.
But labor advocacy groups focused on workers along the food supply chain — many
of whom work outside, like farmworkers, or in poorly ventilated spaces, like
warehouse and meat processing facilities — say workers have waited too long for
basic life-saving protections. Earlier this month, Senator Alex Padilla and
Congresswoman Judy Chu, both from California, reintroduced a bill to Congress
that, if passed, would direct OSHA to enact a federal heat standard for workers
swiftly.
It’s a largely symbolic move, as the rulemaking process is already underway,
and the legislation is unlikely to advance in a Republican-controlled Congress.
But the bill signals Democratic lawmakers are watching closely and urgently
expect a final rule four years after OSHA first began drafting its proposed
rule. The message is clear: However fast OSHA is moving, it hasn’t been enough
to protect workers from the worst impacts of climate change."
Via
Reasons to be Cheerful:
<
https://reasonstobecheerful.world/what-were-reading-copenhagen-sponge-city/>
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
