Page 48 - OHS, March 2020

SUMMER HAZARDS
Satisfying OSHA
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration currently issues citations to employers based on the general duty clause, a part of federal safety law that requires employers to maintain a safe workplace even in the absence of regulations and standards target- ing specific safety practices. There is, however, no standard for heat exposure from OSHA. (State OSHA plans in California, Minnesota and Washington do have standards for heat exposure.)
An employer with workers who could be exposed to hot envi- ronments must establish a heat illness prevention program to satis- fy OSHA.6 The agency has said that such a program should include:
■ Training all employees and supervisors on heat illness pre- vention.
■ Providing enough fresh water for each employee and en- couraging them to drink.
■ Providing access to shade and encouraging employees to take a cool-down rest in it; they should not wait until they feel sick to cool-down.
■ Developing and implementing written procedures, specific to the worksite, for heat illness prevention, including plans on how to handle medical emergencies and steps to take if someone shows signs of a heat illness.
■ Planning for emergencies and training workers on preven- tion, including any of the previous written procedures.
■ Documenting any and all training, discussions and empha- sis on heat-related prevention, training and safety.
While there is no specific standard for heat, employers never- theless have a duty to protect their workers from recognized se- rious hazards in the workplace, including heat-related hazards. OSHA’s message is “Water. Rest. Shade.” Employers should work to ingrain this slogan into their workers’ minds when working in the hot summer months.
Sydny Shepard is the Editor of Occupational Health & Safety magazine. REFERENCES
1. https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2016-106/pdfs/2016-106. pdf?id=10.26616/NIOSHPUB2016106
2. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heat-rash/symptoms- causes/syc-20373276
3. https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/heat-cramps
4. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heat-exhaustion/
symptoms-causes/syc-20373250
5. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heat-stroke/symptoms- causes/syc-20353581
6. https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/heatstress/standards.html
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