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House subcommittee debates federal heat rule as critics call for flexibility
Summary
Witnesses and members clashed over OSHA’s proposed nationwide heat illness and injury prevention rule, with employers urging a performance-based, regionally flexible approach and safety advocates and former OSHA officials urging binding protections and more staffing for enforcement.
Witnesses at the House Education and Labor subcommittee on workforce protections on Thursday debated whether the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s proposed heat illness rule should be a strict nationwide prescription or a performance-based, flexible standard tailored to local conditions.
The dispute cut across party lines and witnesses’ backgrounds. Jake Parson, division president for the Northeast of CRH Americas Materials, representing the National Association of Manufacturers, told the panel that a one-size-fits-all rule would be unworkable. “A performance oriented approach would tie specific standards to specific areas and and help help industry craft a solution that makes sense for where they are,” Parson said during questioning by the committee chair.
The disagreement matters because supporters of a federal heat standard say the regulation could prevent worker deaths and illnesses, while opponents say overly prescriptive rules…
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