As temperatures soar throughout the Southwest, employers must take steps to protect outdoor workers from heat illness by providing water, rest, shade and training. 

In California, Cal/OSHA’s heat illness prevention standard applies to all outdoor worksites. To prevent heat illness, the law requires employers to provide outdoor workers fresh water, access to shade at 80 degrees and whenever requested by a worker, cool-down rest breaks in addition to regular breaks and maintain a written prevention plan with training on the signs of heat illness and what to do in case of an emergency. 

When the temperature at outdoor worksites reaches or exceeds 95 degrees, Cal/OSHA’s standard includes high-heat protections in certain industries, including agricultural operations and transportation of agricultural products. High-heat procedures include ensuring employees are observed regularly for signs of heat illness and establishing effective communication methods so workers can contact a supervisor when needed. 

Employers with outdoor workers in all industries must take the following steps to prevent heat illness: 

• Plan – Develop and implement an effective written heat illness prevention plan that includes emergency response procedures. 
• Training – Train all employees and supervisors on heat illness prevention. 
• Water – Provide drinking water that is fresh, pure, suitably cool, accessible and free of charge so that each worker can drink at least 1 quart per hour, and encourage workers to do so. 

• Rest – Encourage workers to take a cool-down rest in the shade for at least five minutes when they feel the need to do so to protect themselves from overheating. Workers should not wait until they feel sick to cool down. 
• Shade – Provide proper shade when temperatures exceed 80 degrees. Workers have the right to request and be provided shade to cool off at any time. 

Cal/OSHA’s Heat Illness Prevention special emphasis program includes enforcement of the heat regulation as well as multilingual outreach and training programs for California’s employers and workers. Details on heat illness prevention requirements and training materials are available online on Cal/OSHA’s Heat Illness Prevention web page and the 99calor.org informational website. A Heat Illness Prevention online tool is also available on Cal/OSHA’s website.