HB3982 - Relating to requiring certain employers to provide heat safety training and protections to employees; providing an administrative penalty.

  89R12004 KKR-F     By: Walle H.B. No. 3982       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to requiring certain employers to provide heat safety   training and protections to employees; providing an administrative   penalty.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  This Act shall be known as the Worker Heat   Illness, Injury, and Death Prevention Act.          SECTION 2.  The legislature finds that:                (1)  heat is the number one weather-related cause of   death in the country, and in recent years the number of Texans who   died due to heat-related illness has continued to grow, exceeding   500 deaths for which heat was the primary or a contributing cause of   death in 2023 alone;                (2)  exposure to heat is a clear occupational hazard   for workers across many industries and can result in serious   illness, injury, or death when appropriate preventative measures   are not taken; and                (3)  public agencies, medical facilities, and   industries in this state do not have a systematic method for   collecting accurate data on heat-related illnesses, injuries, and   deaths experienced by Texans, leading to inaccurate records in   which incidences of these illnesses, injuries, and deaths are   underreported or misattributed to other causes.          SECTION 3.  The purpose of this Act is to provide consistent   statewide regulation to protect workers from the long-standing and   rapidly worsening threat of heat-related hazards in the workplace   that result in the illness, injury, or death of hundreds of Texas   workers each year.          SECTION 4.  Subtitle B, Title 2, Labor Code, is amended by   adding Chapter 53 to read as follows:   CHAPTER 53. WORKPLACE HEAT SAFETY PROTECTIONS           Sec. 53.001.  DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:                 (1)     "Acclimatization" means the gradual process an   individual undergoes to adapt to higher levels of heat stress.                 (2)     "Commission" means the Texas Workforce   Commission.                 (3)     "Employee," "employer," and "employment" have the   meanings assigned by Section 61.001.                 (4)     "Extreme heat" means a temperature with a heat   index at or above 80 degrees Fahrenheit.                 (5)     "Heat index" means a measure of how hot it feels   when relative humidity is combined with air temperature in the   location the individual is present.                 (6)     "Heat stress" means the net heat load to which an   individual is exposed at a given time, including exposure through:                       (A)     environmental factors such as ambient   temperatures and sun exposure;                       (B)     radiant heat sources, including equipment,   clothing, and materials; and                       (C)  physical exertion.                 (7)     "Heat-related illness" means any disorder or   negative health effect caused or directly exacerbated by an   individual's overexposure to heat and high levels of heat stress,   including heatstroke, heat exhaustion or fatigue, heat cramps, heat   rash, and heat syncope, fainting, and dehydration.                 (8)     "Rest break" means a paid break from work during   paid work hours. The term does not include a regular meal break an   employer provides to an employee.                 (9)     "Shade" means blockage of or protection from   direct sunlight offered by a structure or screen.                 (10)     "Shaded area" means a space with shade in which an   individual or group of individuals occupying the space may   comfortably sit or stand while being shielded from direct sunlight.                 (11)     "Supervisor" means an employee whose   responsibility is to oversee or direct the work activities of other   employees on behalf of an employer.                 (12)     "Work area" means the immediate space within a   worksite in which an employee performs work activities.                 (13)     "Worksite" means a building, structure, outdoor   property, or vehicle in or on which an employee performs work   activities.           Sec.   53.002.     APPLICABILITY. (a) This chapter applies to   employers whose employees perform work activities during a period   of time that the heat index at the employees' worksite is at or   above 80 degrees Fahrenheit, regardless of the location of the   worksite or type of employment.           (b)     This chapter does not apply to an employer whose   employees engage in emergency operations activities, including   disaster response or restoration of essential services, during the   period of time the employees are engaged in those activities.           Sec.   53.003.     REQUIRED EMPLOYER HEAT SAFETY TRAINING. (a)   An employer shall provide heat safety training to all of the   employer's employees, including supervisors.           (b)     The training, including any related written materials,   must be provided to each employee in a language and manner that the   employee understands.           (c)     The training may be provided through an individual   course or a program of courses aimed at improving the ability of   employees and employers to identify and mitigate hazards that   contribute to heat-related illnesses, injuries, and deaths,   including:                 (1)     recognizing the signs and symptoms of a   heat-related illness; and                 (2)     taking basic preventative measures to decrease the   risk of heat stress and heat-related illness, injury, or death.           (d)     The training course or program may include instruction   in cardiopulmonary resuscitation.           (e)  The training required by Subsection (a) must cover:                 (1)     work and environmental conditions that cause or   affect heat-related illnesses;                 (2)     personal risk factors that cause or affect   heat-related illnesses;                 (3)     the concept and importance of, and methods for,   acclimatization;                 (4)     the importance of frequent consumption of drinking   water and rest breaks in preventing heat-related illnesses;                 (5)     the different types of heat-related illnesses,   signs and symptoms of heat-related illnesses, and the appropriate   first aid and emergency response measures;                 (6)     the importance of and procedures for reporting to   the employer an employee's signs and symptoms of a heat-related   illness;                 (7)     the employer's personnel procedures, including the   employer's emergency response plan under Section 53.009 and the   requirements for complying with this chapter;                 (8)  basic first aid training; and                 (9)     methods and procedures for checking and verifying   the heat index at a worksite.           (f)     An employer shall provide the training required by   Subsection (a) to:                 (1)     each new employee before the employee is first   exposed to heat in the performance of the employee's work   activities during a period of extreme heat; and                 (2)     all employees annually and immediately following   any incidence of a heat-related illness, injury, or death at a   worksite.           (g)     An employer shall provide employees an opportunity to   ask questions, provide feedback, and request additional   instruction or clarification with respect to the training.           (h)     An employer shall maintain records of each employee's   most recent completion of the training for the duration of the   employee's employment that includes:                 (1)  the employee's name;                 (2)  the name of the person who conducted the training;                 (3)  the date or dates the training was conducted; and                 (4)  a summary of the topics covered in the training.           (i)     An employer shall, annually and immediately following   any incidence of heat-related illness, injury, or death at a   worksite, evaluate and if necessary make appropriate changes to the   training required by Subsection (a) and maintain a record of those   changes. On request, the employer shall make the records available   for examination and copying at no cost to:                 (1)  an employee;                 (2)     an employee's authorized representative,   including a collective bargaining representative; or                 (3)  the commission.           Sec.   53.004.     NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES. An employer shall   display in a conspicuous place, accessible to employees at the   employees' worksite, a notice that describes the requirements of   this chapter. The notice must be provided in a language the   employees are able to understand.           Sec.   53.005.     REST BREAKS. (a) An employer shall provide   paid rest breaks to the employer's employees.           (b)     If an employee is exposed to a heat index at or above 80   but below 91 degrees Fahrenheit, the employee's rest break must   last at least 15 minutes for every four hours the employee works.           (c)     If an employee is exposed to a heat index at or above 91   but below 103 degrees Fahrenheit, the employee's rest break must   last at least 15 minutes for every two hours the employee works.           (d)     If an employee is exposed to a heat index at or above 103   degrees Fahrenheit, the employee's rest break must last at least 20   minutes for every hour the employee works.           (e)     An employer may not require that an employee's rest   break be taken as part of an employee's separate meal break.           Sec.   53.006.     SHADE. (a) An employer shall establish and   maintain at least one indoor or outdoor shaded area that is easily   accessible to employees and is:                 (1)  as close to an employee's work area as practicable;      &#xA0 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]