Appreciate the ongoing support of the little guy.
OSHA-NIOSH is to be respected and carefully supported when guidelines are clear. Violations of any or part of these conditions expose your JCs to strict fines and extra scrutiny.
Exposure to Outdoor and Indoor Heat‑Related Hazards (osha.gov)
The law simply states: Follow the procedures and guidelines from the Federal Regulatory Body.
Now, since everybody is incompetent, your response should always be “not good enough”. I respect that.
I also respect a process where somebody (in this case, a state) attempts to remove unintentional wiggle room, intentional or unintentional incompetence and their attendant effects by standardizing the rules to a simple set of definitions.
I hear you: “not good enough! cast down the JCs!”
I suggest that simplifying rules not only reduces costs, it also clarifies the defining events such that criminal and incompetent actions can be better exposed, interrogated, remedied and, if actions are found insufficient, fines issued.
“Plea for the little guy! It won’t bring Johnny back!”
You’re right. Employee and employer responsibilities will never be second to any law, local or federal.
In this way, “letting” a city or county decide what’s best for “on the ground” conditions in a vacuum doesn’t really add anything but more confusion. This is especially true for regional and multisite work forces which may run afoul of some sub paragraph of local codes.
Did you know that Disney has had a strict requirement for it’s character actors to have 15 minutes on as a limit with at least 15 minutes off when weather is severe (HOT)?
This is far more restrictive than any state or federal law. Guess what? Who cares. They manage their practices, OSHA audits, and the show goes on.
Here’s some data. (HINT: Search for “heat”)