Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act Reintroduced in Congress

Last summer, the Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act was reintroduced in Congress. The legislation requires the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to create a standard for employers to implement that protects workers from heat stress and related illnesses or injuries. Measures can include paid breaks in a cool space, access to water, limitations on time exposed to heat, and emergency response for workers with heat-related illnesses.

It also directs employers to provide training on the risk factors that can lead to heat illness and guidance on the proper procedures for responding to its symptoms. Importantly, this law also grants OSHA enforcement the ability to make sure that unscrupulous contractors are penalized for putting profits over workers’ health.

“We know too many workers still work in dangerous conditions, putting their health and safety on the line every day to provide for their families. There’s not much dignity in a job where you fear for your health or your life,” said Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), a co-sponsor of the legislation.