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As record-breaking temperatures continue to put working people at risk across the country, the Trump Administration is pulling back protections for workers from one of the fastest-growing workplace hazards: extreme heat.
Recent reports say the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has reduced the heat-focused inspections and enforcement efforts that were previously expanded under the Biden administration. Now, the Congress Republicans are blocking the first-ever federal workplace heat standard proposed by the Biden administration in 2024, which would establish dire nationwide protections for workers.
For the IAM Union, this isn’t politics; it’s about workers’ lives. The Trump administration and Congress Republicans are shamefully putting workers at higher risk and choosing corporate interests over workers’ safety.
“The job of government is to protect working people—not make it easier for employers to cut corners at workers’ expense,” said IAM International President Brian Bryant. “When temperatures reach dangerous levels, employers have a responsibility to provide the protections workers need to stay safe while doing their jobs. Rolling back heat safety efforts puts lives at risk, and the IAM Union will continue fighting for enforceable standards that ensure every worker makes it home safely.”
The Biden administration’s proposal of the nation’s first comprehensive federal heat standard entails simple but necessary requirements for employers: develop a heat illness prevention plan, provide workers with access to drinking water and shaded/cooled recovery areas, allow paid rest breaks during periods of extreme heat, educate workers and supervisors on the signs of heat illness, and have a procedure for when workers show symptoms of heat stress. The proposal was expected to protect tens of millions of both indoor and outdoor workers.
“Whether you’re on the tarmac, in a hangar, or on the factory floor, extreme heat is a real hazard,” said IAM Union Air Transport Territory General Vice President Richie Johnsen. “Every worker deserves common-sense protections that keep them safe on the job
Now, while heat is already the leading weather-related cause of death in the United States, Congressional Republicans have advanced the Heat Workforce Standards Act to block implementation of the Biden-era rule, arguing that those basic federal standards impose a burden on businesses.
No worker should have to choose between earning a paycheck and risking their life in dangerous heat, and worker safety should never depend on the political climate.
The IAM Union will continue standing with labor allies across the country to demand enforceable, national heat standards and stronger OSHA enforcement to ensure employers protect workers from preventable illness and death.
