By Clint Thompson
According to the Federal Register, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is initiating rulemaking to protect indoor and outdoor workers from hazardous heat.
But they are soliciting additional information about the extent and nature of hazardous heat in the workplace and nature of effectiveness of interventions and controls used to prevent heat-related injury and illness.
This Advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) seeks information on issues that OSHA can consider in developing the standard, including the scope of the standard and types of controls that might be required.
Anyone can submit comments on or before Dec. 27, 2021.
All comments, including any personal information you provide, will be placed in the public docket without change and will be publicly available online at www.regulations.gov.
The U.S. Department of Labor announced in September that OSHA was initiating enhanced measures to protect workers better in hot environments. Included in those measures is a rulemaking process it is developing for a workplace heat standard.
The American Farm Bureau Federation is cautioning against a one-size-fits-all approach to the potential workplace heat standard.
“Hopefully, a multitude of viewpoints, including those on farms, are listened to and heard in the development of this regulation. It could have some big impacts,” said Allison Crittenden, director of Congressional Regulations at American Farm Bureau Federation.