California has introduced new regulations to protect people who work indoors from heat-related illnesses.
As of July 24, employers in the state must implement safety measures that, in most cases, go into effect when indoor temperatures reach 82 degrees F. The Heat Illness Prevention in Indoor Workplaces Order, approved by the Office of Administrative Law the day before it went into effect, applies to most indoor workplaces, such as restaurants, warehouses, manufacturing plants and auto repair shops.
Requirements include, but are not limited to, providing water, rest and cooling areas, and training. When the indoor temperature is 30 degrees Celsius, additional requirements apply, such as cooling the work area, implementing work and rest schedules, and providing personal heat protection equipment. When workers wear clothing that restricts heat dissipation or work in areas with high radiant heat, the additional requirements apply at 27 degrees Celsius.
Henry Arroyo has five Fix Car Collision repair shops, one each in Cathedral City, Indio and Palm Springs and two in Palm Desert. All are located in California’s Coachella Valley, where temperatures regularly reach triple digits in the summer. This year, temperatures reached 50 degrees Celsius – a record high.
Arroyo said his businesses would not need to make any adjustments to comply with the new regulations because “we have been working in the desert for over 30 years and we already take precautions to make sure our employees stay cool. We try to make sure we are always one step ahead.”
When temperatures soar, Arroyo’s nearly 50 employees receive fans, misters, ice packs and portable Portacool evaporative coolers that can lower the temperature in the roughly 10-by-10-foot area where they work.
The shops are also equipped with insulated roofs and coolers stocked with plenty of water, Gatorade and electrolyte powder. Employees have access to shaded areas and air-conditioned rooms where they can take breaks – including the shops’ paint rooms, which must be air-conditioned to prevent the paint from drying out.
In addition, employees can adjust their working hours to work early in the morning or late in the evening, avoiding the hottest time of day.
“We are doing everything imaginable to make sure they are cooled down and not training in the heat,” Arroyo said.
The key is to make sure employees stay hydrated and don’t push themselves too hard to do their jobs in hot weather.
“We want them to cool down (if they need it); the job gets done,” Arroyo said. “We want to make sure they don’t get heat stroke or pass out.”
Employers and employees who have questions or need assistance with workplace health and safety programs can call Cal/OSHA’s Helpline at 800-963-9424. Additional resources for employers and employees can be found on the Cal/OSHA Heat Illness Prevention webpage and at 99calor.org, as well as an online Heat Illness Prevention Tool.
Workers with questions about preventing heat illness in indoor and outdoor workplaces can speak to a Cal/OSHA representative at 1-833-579-0927. This number also provides information on how to file confidential complaints about workplace safety and health hazards.
