On October 27, OSHA published an “Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings.” OSHA did not have a prior specific hazardous heat conditions standard.
The Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking initiated a public comment period to gather stakeholder perspectives and expertise on heat-stress thresholds, heat-acclimatization planning and exposure monitoring. This period ended on December 27.
Heat has been identified consistently as the leading cause of death among weather-related workplace hazards. OSHA previously implemented its nationwide enforcement initiative on heat-related hazards and is now forming a National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health Heat Injury and Illness Prevention Work Group.