California
California adopts rule limiting indoor workplace heat exposure
Dive Brief:
- California’s Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board approved a standard on indoor, workplace heat exposure impacting indoor workplaces, the board announced last week.
- The new standards apply to indoor work areas where the temperature or heat index reach 87 degrees Fahrenheit or 82 degrees in areas with a high degree of radiant heat or in workplaces where workers wear clothing or gear that significantly restricts bodily heat loss. It also applies to workplaces where the temperature reaches 82 degrees, though with a large number of exceptions.
- Employers covered by the rule must provide access to clean drinking water and cool down areas to workers, with the latter defined as areas away from radiant heat sources, where workers can sit without touching each other, and where the air temperature is below 82 degrees, unless employers can demonstrate this is infeasible.
Dive Insight:
By the end of May, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recorded 12 consecutive months of record breaking global heat, and June has already seen major heatwaves in California and the eastern United States. Given the steady increase in both global average temperature and global atmospheric carbon dioxide, as measured by NASA, the hazards heat poses to workers are likely to increase.
Because most restaurant work occurs indoors, restaurant workers may be more insulated from the immediate dangers of extreme heat than workers in primarily outdoor occupations, like construction and agriculture, but higher temperatures can strain HVAC systems.
Some restaurant workers have staged workplace actions in protest of high kitchen temperatures. In San Jose, California, workers staged a one-day strike at a Taco Bell in June to protest conditions they said included extreme heat, according to a press release from the California Fast Food Workers Union. Later in June, QSR workers, including Popeyes employees, organized rallies in Durham, North Carolina; Charleston, South Carolina and Atlanta demanding consistent breaks with free water and adequate air conditioning, the Union of Southern Service Workers said in a statement.
Recently, a viral LinkedIn post claimed Chick-fil-A had provided some of its workers with cooling gear. Such cooling technology, however, is the lowest rung in the hierarchy of controls, a system of classifying safety practices. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, PPE is less likely to be effective than practices that eliminate hazards, replace hazardous conditions with safer conditions, isolate workers from hazards through the built environment, or change the way employees work to avoid encountering hazards.
The California heat rule states that employers can use administrative controls where engineering controls are not feasible, and PPE where administrative controls are not feasible in an effort to reduce workers’ heat exposure.
The rule requires employers with high-heat work spaces to maintain accurate records of temperature and the heat index, whichever is greater. California will also mandate employers provide cooling breaks to workers in hot conditions.
The Office of Administrative Law has 30 working days from June 20, when the rule was approved, to review the proposed regulation. OSHSB asked the OAL to let the regulation take effect immediately upon approval.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — The California Highway Patrol is urging drivers to stay focused on the road as they head out for Fourth of July celebrations.
The holiday weekend can be a dangerous time on our roads as millions of drivers are expected to travel.
CHP Officer Jorge Toro joined Eyewitness News Mornings to share how drivers can stay safe behind the wheel.
Officer Toro also highlighted the importance of sober driving over the holiday.
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He says anyone hosting a party should make sure all of their guests get home safely, ensuring anyone who may be impaired doesn’t drive.
California is returning a stretch of rugged Mendocino County coast to the Indigenous nations whose ancestors once stewarded its shores.
State transportation officials recently approved the transfer of Blues Beach and the surrounding bluffs to Kai Poma, a nonprofit founded by representatives of the Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians, Round Valley Indian Tribes and Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians.
The transfer of 136 acres just south of the community of Westport will mark the first time land managed by the California Department of Transportation has been returned to Indigenous tribes.
“This is beyond huge,” said J. Carlos Rivera, tribal chairman of the Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians. “It’s enormous from our tribal perspective that we are basically obtaining the land that our people once lived on before colonization.”
California purchased the swath of rocky cliffs and windswept shoreline in the 1960s to expand the construction of Highway 1 and create a scenic viewpoint for highway travelers, according to a California Coastal Commission report.
More recently, public access has been largely unregulated, and summer weekends and holidays have drawn large groups who camp and party on the beach, at times driving through sensitive areas, damaging cultural sites and leaving behind trash, the report states.
Kai Poma plans to conduct cultural and archaeological resource studies and environmental surveys and then prepare a resource management plan for the property, according to planning documents. The nonprofit and the Coastal Commission have drafted a public access management plan that states the land will be open from sunrise to sunset.
Rivera described the entire property as a sacred site. The coastal waters are used by tribal people for seaweed and abalone gathering, and the shores host youth cultural camps, he said. “Protecting the land, it has a deeper meaning for us because we’re connected to the land,” he said.
The effort to acquire the land took years — and required a change in state law. Caltrans lacked the ability to transfer land to tribal governments until 2021, when Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill sponsored by state Sen. Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg) that enabled the transfer, according to a news release issued at the time. The law also bars commercial activity on the property and requires public access be maintained.
“With 136 acres now officially transferred into tribal stewardship, one of the most spectacular stretches of the Mendocino Coast will be forever protected,” McGuire said in a statement.
“This agreement, the first of its kind in California, gives these three dynamic Native American tribes the rightful opportunity to reclaim sacred lands and cultural traditions on this special piece of earth. And it’s about damn time.”
The land transfer cleared its last regulatory hurdle June 26 with the approval by the California Transportation Commission, said Neil Thapar, an attorney who works as an advisor and legal consultant to Kai Poma. Caltrans staff will next record the deed transferring the title from the state of California to Kai Poma, which is expected to happen any day, he said.
Fireworks Safety Guide
Essential safety tips for buying, handling, and watching fireworks to ensure a safe celebration.
With July 4 falling on a Saturday this year, many businesses and organizations are taking the day off Friday, July 3, to mark America’s 250th birthday. From banking to mail service, here’s what’s open and closed for the holiday weekend.
Most federal offices closed, mail service to continue
Non-essential federal offices will be closed on July 3. However, mail service will continue as normal, and post offices are scheduled to remain open.
Most California government offices to remain open
Most California government offices will be open on July 3, with some exceptions.
DMV offices throughout the state will be open. However, the Employment Development Department will be closed.
DMV offices that offer Saturday hours will be closed on July 4.
Private parcel services to remain open
UPS and FedEx are both scheduled to operate normally on July 3, but will suspend service on July 4.
Stock markets closed
Both the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq will be closed on July 3.
Most banks to stay open
While most banks were expected to operate normally on July 3, some may operate under modified holiday hours. All banks will be closed on July 4.
Online banking services should remain operational.
Grocery stores
Most major grocery chains will be open on both July 3 and July 4. Trader Joe’s locations will be open for regular business on July 3 but will close early at 5 p.m. on the Fourth of July.
Retailers
Many major retail stores, such as Walmart and Target, plan to operate under normal business hours on both July 3 and 4. All Costco warehouse stores operate under normal business hours on July 3, but will close on July 4.
Restaurants
Most major restaurant chains remain open on July 4, but some will have limited hours. All Raising Cane’s locations will close on July 4.
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