Hello,

I recently started a job were I scan cars for damage. I work for a temp agency (Workforce) at the CVS plant for Hyundai.

The first day they asked me if I would be okay in the heat and that was it. Most of the workers at the plant work in direct sunlight 10hrs a day 6 days a week. last week temperatures were in the high 90s and that is without taking into consideration that we work on what is basically a parking lot. I was told that I could wear a hat, but I did not have one the first day. I have been working for three days and already have a major sunburn on my face and forearms and that is with using some sunblock.


Nobody briefed me on signs of heat stroke or heat exhaustion it is basically left to the workers to put a towel and a hat on their head (which they do)

We work 6:30am to 5:15pm we get a 15 min break in the morning a 45 min lunch and a 15 min break in the afternoon, other than that we are expected to be in the direct sun doing our jobs. The company provides a cooler, Ice, water, and when they don't run out gatorade mix. The soda machines are always out. So if the employees don't like water they just don't drink anything and nobody tells them to. Most of the employees are black so I guess the skin cancer thing is not really an issue. So far nobody has died or passed out because they usually just quit if they can't take the heat.

Does OSHA have any requlations about working in high heat and humidity, or giving new employees saftey breifings about working conditions?

OSHA does not require that your employer provide a variety of beverages in case someone doesn't want plain water.

There also isn't a rule that makes it mandatory for your employer to train you in the signs of heat realted illness before you start working. It is a good idea to do so if employees are going to be working out in the heat, but it isn't required.

Agreed. However if an employee does experience heat stroke or similar, then it would be a worker's compensation claim. If for that reason only, an employer is well advised to counsel employees on how to avoid heat related illnesses and provide water and "sports drink" type beverages (to replace potassium, sodium, etc.) that one loses when working in severe heat. No laws require that though.

P.S. You need to reapply your sun block every few hours, even if it says it's waterproof.

thank you for your help

leta

Although there are no regulations from OSHA specifically regarding heat stress, heat stress IS considered to be covered under Section 5 (A)(1)

Each Employer--

(1) shall furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees;

Sounds like the company is making some attempt to protect the employees however, they should provide some form of training which should include recognizing the signs of heat stress, how often to take breaks, proper hydration, etc.

OSHA has some training materials for this exact issue.

If your company only provides water, and does not require a physical, train its employees on hazard mitigation and identification OSHA will nail them for it.

97degrees and 100% humidity can and has killed within hours of starting work.

Your company is taking a huge risk.

sorry this post is old, not sure how I pulled it up.....

No worries, we have all done it! ;)

One slight clarification. OSHA does not require training on working in the heat. It recommends it and any employer with employees working in such an environment would be well advised toprovide it, but it is not among the training that is mandated by law.

My boyfriend works at a truck stop washing tractor/trailers. Here in Va it gets HOT in the summertime (heat indexes of upwards of 105 degrees and very high humidity). They use HOT water to wash the trucks, causing an even higher humidity in the immediate area around the wash bay. I've done a lot of reading up on OSHA to see if they make any kind of provisions about heat being an unsafe working condition, etc. No dice. Like everyone else said, the employer should technically provide employees with some information about how to identify heat related illness but they are by no means required to do so.

And, yes, sunscreen needs to be reapplied at least every 2 hours.