Texas workers have few protections from the heat
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Construction crews, warehouse workers and other laborers are working in dangerously hot conditions through the historic heat wave sweeping the southern U.S. — and employers have few specific legal requirements to keep them safe, Axios' Jessica Boehm reports.
Why it matters: Climate change has caused hotter, longer and more frequent heat waves globally, putting workers at risk for heat-related illnesses.
State of play: No federal or state law protects Texas workers specifically from extreme heat, UNT Dallas College of Law associate professor Michael Maslanka tells Axios.
- Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) standards include a "general duty" for employers to keep their workers safe, but it is a broad guideline.
- The Biden administration announced it would add heat safety rules to OSHA in 2021, but the federal rule-making process takes years.
Meanwhile: The Texas Legislature approved a bill this summer that stripped cities' authority to enforce many local regulations, including ones in Austin and Dallas that require employers to give 10-minute rest breaks for construction workers every four hours. The new law goes into effect Sept. 1.
- "The cities wanted to take at least a step forward. But Texas is actually taking two steps back," Maslanka says.
Threat level: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics tallied at least 436 work-related deaths caused by environmental heat exposure in the U.S. from 2011-2021.
- Last month, a longtime mail carrier collapsed on his route in Dallas' Lakewood neighborhood and died. The cause of death hasn't been determined, per the Dallas County Medical Examiners Office.
- Between May 1 and July 21, four people died of hyperthermia in Tarrant County. Two of them were working outdoors, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office.
What they're doing: Democratic U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, of Dallas, and several other lawmakers wrote to the U.S. postmaster general this month in response to the postal worker's death, asking how the postal service protects its employees in the heat.
- "His unnecessary and untimely death was likely preventable and a stark reminder of the costs of the global climate emergency and the effect of more frequent and damaging extreme weather events," the letter says.
Of note: The postal service declined to confirm to Axios whether it has modified carriers' schedules for the heat, but said it offers mandatory heat-related and safety training for employees.
The bottom line: "My first message is to employers: If you keep saying that people in your workplace are a valuable resource and that they're your partners ... Then treat them like that," Maslanka says.
- He said the National Labor Relations Act allows workers to file a compensation claim if they think they were injured because of the heat. And if they believe they were retaliated against for a claim, they can file a lawsuit.
- "I want them to know they're not completely powerless," he says.
Be smarter: The Texas Department of Insurance has these tips for people who work outdoors.