OSHA Creates Hot Weather Rules
July 9, 2021
In March 2020, Gov. Kate Brown told the Oregon branch of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to create a proposed set of rules aimed at protecting employees from extreme heat and excessive wildfire smoke. This proposal was originally due in July 2021, but was pushed back to September 2021 because of the pandemic.
While Oregon OSHA was putting together this proposal, Oregonians experienced a record-breaking heatwave in June. Temperatures reached upwards of 100 degrees, and on June 26, Sebastian Francisco Perez died while working in St. Paul. Oregon OSHA’s investigation is ongoing, but their preliminary report lists his death as heat-related. A vigil was held for Perez on July 3.