Heat Illness Prevention Awareness - Employer Responsibilities

The hot season is upon us, and State Fund would like to remind you of the four steps required of all California employers to protect their employees from the heat.

• First of all, employees must have adequate water to drink all day long. They have to be able to drink at least four eight-ounce cups of water per hour throughout the shift. This is an absolute necessity to protect them from the heat.
• Employees need to be able to take a five-minute preventative recovery period whenever they feel they need to; not to wait until they're sick, but to do it when they feel they need to take a break in order to prevent themselves from developing signs and symptoms of heat illness.
• Employees have to be trained. They need to learn the signs and symptoms of heat illness are so they will recognize the onset in themselves and others.
• Supervisors need training so that they can keep an eye out for employees and take care of them if they look like they need attention.
• Planning must be done to develop and implement written procedures for complying with the Cal/OSHA Heat Illness Prevention Standard.

Emergency response is a critical component of the standard. Employers need to plan in advance for emergencies because they do happen. Employers need to have provision for emergency services to be called for outdoor workers. It's critical that at all times there is someone on the worksite who knows how to give directions for emergency responders to get to the site. Often that can be a big problem for people working in remote locations; it's a bigger problem where there are employees who don't speak English. There has to be somebody available when problems arise who can give good directions on how to get to a site. Many cases have come up in the past where employees could have been saved if the response had been a little bit quicker.

And don't forget; if it is an employee’s first time working in high heat that employee needs to be given time to get acclimated. Acclimatizing to the heat can take anywhere from one to two weeks. That is why during the onset of warmer weather and the first heat wave of the season, supervisors should pay extra attention to the condition of employees who may not be acclimatized yet. Try to work around the heat, and arrange the shift so that employees are not working during the hottest part of the day.

Due to the severity of heat illness, Cal/OSHA has taken additional steps to clarify some of the issues concerning the Heat Illness Prevention Standard. Cal/OSHA has a dedicated Web page to educate employers on this topic, including new Heat Illness Prevention training and publications for 2010.

To learn more about heat illness prevention attend a free State Fund Employer Education series seminar on heat illness prevention for outdoor workers. Check our seminars page for a seminar happening near you.