Heat illness prevention plans: What employers need to know
OSHA has not yet finalized a federal heat illness prevention rule, but seven states have issued their own heat stress regulations, and OSHA can cite employers for heat hazards under the General Duty Clause. Creating a written heat illness prevention plan protects workers now and demonstrates good faith to inspectors, even where no rule applies.
After the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a proposed heat illness prevention rule on August 30, 2024, we have yet to see a final rule. OSHA has held public hearings and received public comments on the proposed rule since that time, but it may be years until the rule is finalized.
Which states have heat illness prevention rules?
Numerous states have taken matters into their own hands and issued their own heat stress regulations. These states include:
- California
- Colorado
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- Nevada
- Oregon
- Washington
Pennsylvania is also considering establishing its own heat illness prevention rule. However, heat illness threatens workers all over the United States, and temperatures aren’t getting any lower.
Do you need a heat illness prevention plan?
The good news is that even if your state doesn’t have heat illness prevention regulations and your company isn’t required to have a heat illness prevention plan, you can create one anyway in order to protect your workers. You can use the regulations already established by other states as a guideline for creating your plan, as several states have specific requirements for heat illness prevention plan components.
What should a heat illness prevention plan include?
Oregon offers a useful model. The state’s Heat Illness Prevention rule, which covers both outdoor and indoor workplaces, requires employers to create, implement, and maintain a written heat illness prevention plan. The plan must be made available at the worksite to all affected employees, and it must contain the following elements:
- How employees will be trained in the hazards of heat exposure and the necessary steps to prevent heat-related illnesses
- How to recognize the symptoms of dehydration, and how to respond to suspected heat-related illnesses in others
- How sufficient amounts of cool, potable water in work areas will be provided
- How employees will be provided with frequent opportunities and encouragement to stay hydrated by drinking water
- How employees will be provided with sufficient space to rest in a shaded area or cool climate-controlled area, and where heat-affected employees may cool off and recover when signs and symptoms of heat-related illnesses are recognized
- How the employer will implement the heat illness prevention rest break schedule when necessary to keep employees safe
- How the employer will implement heat acclimatization procedures for new employees and employees returning to work from extended absences of seven or more days
You are most likely already doing some of these things in your workplace, such as ensuring employees always have access to cool, potable water, and ensuring they can take breaks in climate-controlled or comfortable areas. A formal heat illness prevention plan would simply keep these efforts documented and organized, and it would show any OSHA inspectors who come to your facility that you are doing as much as possible to protect your employees.
Where can you find heat illness prevention plan templates?
If you don’t have time to develop your own plan totally from scratch, you’re in luck. BLR has developed a template Heat Stress Prevention Plan, as well as a California-specific template, that you can use to create your site- or company-specific plan. Both plan templates are available in the Plan Builder tool available on EHS Hero.
Can OSHA cite employers without a federal heat standard?
Even if there is no applicable heat illness prevention standard that can be used as a basis for citations, OSHA can cite companies under the General Duty Clause (Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act), which requires every employer to provide a safe and healthful workplace free from recognized hazards to its employees. At this point, it seems safe to say that high heat is a recognized hazard that should be mitigated to protect employees. Implementing a formal heat illness prevention plan would provide good evidence to an OSHA inspector that your company is going above and beyond to maintain a safe and healthful workplace.
