Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/1280561
30 PalletCentral • July-August 2020 palletcentral.com Beat the OSHA By Adele L. Abrams, Esq., CMSP B ack when I was a teen, the movie "The Endless Summer" ruled. An Endless Summer was something we longed for. Fast forward to today, there are reports of record-high heat waves with 2020 looking like the hottest summer to date, and "shorts weather" now seems to start in April and end in October (at least in my northeast part of the world). In some parts of the country, of course, summer is a year-round thing – lucky for those folks living in Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, Hawaii, Arizona, and California. But not so lucky for the folks who have to work outdoors constantly in temperatures where the heat index can reach 90° Fahrenheit or higher on a regular basis. Heat stress is often overlooked as an occupational health hazard, but it causes illness in thousands and kills a dozen or more workers each year. It mostly affects workers outdoors in high temperatures, but it can also impact employees indoors where there is not adequate ventilation or air conditioning, particularly when coupled with working near hot equipment or while wearing respiratory protection such as a welder's mask. The use of cloth face masks in many workplaces, as prevention against the spread of COVID-19, only exacerbates the stress on workers in hot workplaces, indoors and out. State OSHA Programs Rules Apply The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) does not currently have a federal standard governing heat stress, although the 22 states and territories that run their own OSHA programs can have more stringent requirements than the federal agency. In states such as California, where employers must have an Injury/Illness Prevention Program (IIPP), all occupational hazards need to be addressed and mitigated including heat stress and ergonomic issues. But beyond that, the following states have enforceable standards for heat exposure: The endless summer of 2020 can be a killer – employee training and awareness are your best defense.