Washington state passed emergency rules on Friday to help increase protections for employees exposed to extreme heat, forcing employers to take added precautions to prevent heat-related illness.
The emergency rules apply to those working in agriculture, construction and other outdoor industries.
“The heat experienced in our state this year has reached catastrophic levels. The physical risk to individuals is significant, in particular those whose occupations have them outdoors all day,” said Gov. Jay Inslee. “Our state has rules in place to ensure these risks are mitigated, however, the real impacts of climate change have changed conditions since those rules were first written, and we are responding.”
According to a release from the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, when the temperature reaches 100 degrees and above, employers must respond by doing the following:
- Providing shade or another sufficient means for employees to cool down; and
- Ensuring workers have a paid cool-down rest period of at least 10 minutes every two hours.
When temperatures reach 89 and above, the new rules combined with the existing rules require employers to:
- Provide water that is cool enough to drink safely;
- Allow and encourage workers to take additional paid preventative cool-down rest to protect from overheating;
- Be prepared by having a written outdoor heat exposure safety program and providing training to employees; and,
- Respond appropriately to any employee with symptoms of heat-related illness.
The updated rules are expected to take effect on July 13.
Washington state’s adoption of the rules comes after Oregon strengthened its requirements on Thursday to help safeguard workers from extreme heat.
Oregon’s rules took effect immediately and will stay in place for 180 days.
Officials with Washington L&I said it will file an official notification to make the rules permanent.
“The recent heat wave is a reminder that extreme temperatures can be a real danger in the workplace. With more hot weather on the way, we’re taking action now,” said L&I Director Joel Sacks. “The emergency rule clarifies existing requirements and outlines commonsense steps employers must take to keep the workers who are responsible for growing our food, paving our roads and putting up our buildings safe on the job.”
©2021 Cox Media Group
