Rep. Adams Applauds OSHA’s Heat Injury and Illness Prevention Rule

WASHINGTON - Congresswoman Alma S. Adams, Ph.D. (NC-12), along with Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott, Congressman Raúl Grijalva (AZ-07), Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-28), and Congressman Greg Casar (TX-35), all members of the House Committee on Education and Workforce, led 52 House Members in submitting a comment letter applauding the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)'s proposed rule to protect workers from occupational exposure to extreme heat.

"As Members of Congress, we have been calling on OSHA for years to implement a national standard to protect indoor and outdoor workers from extreme heat and are extremely pleased with your leadership in moving forward with this proposed rule,"wrote the Members.

The Biden-Harris Administration published this Notice of a Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), titled "Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings," in August 2024. This follows years of advocacy by these Members urging adoption of a federal heat standard for workers, including a letter Reps. Adams, Scott, Chu, Grijalva, sent to the Department of Labor (DOL) in August 2021 urging the Department to undertake such a rulemaking.

During the summer of 2024, the world's hottest year on record, close to one third of the entire U.S. population lived in areas with dangerous levels of heat. Public Citizen estimatesthat occupational heat stress causes as many as 2,000 worker deaths and 170,000 worker illnesses and injuries annually in the U.S.

"These facts speak for themselves,"the Members continued. "Workers are in grave danger from extreme heat, and as global temperatures continue to rise and summer heat waves become more severe, their lives are increasingly at risk. We are moved to act not just by the data, but by the many heartbreaking stories we have heard from our constituents and workers across the nation."

The Members thanked the Biden-Harris Administration for proposing the rulemaking and urged that the final rule be consistent with the standards outlined in the Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness, Injury, and Fatality Prevention Act of 2023 (H.R. 4897), a bipartisan bill that would have directed OSHA to establish a standard to protect workers from heat-related injuries and illnesses.

"We urge OSHA to finalize a strong, enforceable rule…as soon as possible, to ensure robust and life-saving heat protections are finally put in place for tens of millions of vulnerable workers in every ZIP code. No one should be forced to risk their health and their life just to provide for their family," the Members concluded.

To read the full comment letter, click here.