Sep 4, 2009
Did you know that California employers are required to take four steps to prevent heat illness? The steps are:
- Training employees and supervisors about heat illness prevention.
- Provide enough fresh water for each employee to drink at least 1 quart per hour, and encourage them to do so.
- Provide access to shade for at least 5 minutes of rest for an employee who believes they need a preventative recovery period.
- Develop and implement written procedures for complying with the Cal/OSHA Heat Illness Prevention Standard.
Further information can be found at the California Department of Industrial Relations Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) at http://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/HeatIllnessInfo.html. Main topics for further heat related information are:
- Heat illness training – including seminars and PowerPoint training in English and Spanish.
- Heat illness regulation.
- Heat illness prevention publications – many available in English and Spanish.
- Additional heat illness links.
The University of California has heat stress information as well as many other safety tips at http://groups.ucanr.org/ehs/Safety_Notes/.
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