Advocates Rally for Better VA Heat Illness Prevention Standards Before Record Breaking Summer Temperatures
As temperatures are expected to hit record highs, labor unions, faith leaders, and environmental advocates rallied today for better occupational heat illness prevention standards in Virginia.
“With the impacts of climate change, extreme heat events are only going to increase in frequency, expand across geography, and reach temperature extremes previously unobserved,” said Virginia State Senator Ghazala Hashmi (D-15). “We cannot ignore how these extreme heat conditions will impact every sector of the Commonwealth’s economy—agriculture, construction, manufacturing, and services—and lead to heat-induced injuries and even deaths. Anyone who is exposed to heat while providing for themselves and their family deserves all that we can do to protect their lives, starting with access to shade, water, and rest. This past session, we weren’t successful in passing commonsense legislation that would have provided these protections, but I am confident that during the next General Assembly session Virginia will take bold action and be a leader in workplace protections.”
The rally was part of the nationwide “Heat Justice Now” events taking place across the country this week.
Senator Hashmi and Virginia House of Representatives Delegate Phil Hernandez (D-94) both sponsored legislation to protect workers in high hazard industries from heat-related illness. The standards included access to water and climate-controlled spaces during breaks, more rest periods, and having emergency response procedures in place. The bill would have also compensated workers $1,000 for employer violations of the new standards.
“All workers deserve a safe environment, free from the risk of serious illness or death,” said Delegate Phil Hernandez. “In the face of increasingly hot summers, it is imperative that we ensure everyone can go to work with dignity and return home with their health. We know how to keep workers safe from heat illness: water, shade, and rest. It is a simple strategy that has worked throughout nature for as long as humans have existed.”
“Virginia LCV stands with the labor community in support of protections for workers from the dangers of extreme heat—the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the country,” said Blair St. Ledger-Olson, Director of Advocacy and Campaigns, Virginia League of Conservation Voters. “We will continue pushing for legislation that supports communities impacted by the climate crisis, protects our air and water from corporate pollution, and delivers affordable clean energy to all Virginians.”
“Heat illness on the job disproportionately affects construction and building trade workers,” said Jason Parker, President, Virginia State Building & Construction Trades Council. “Serious injury and death from heat are entirely preventable. We need our state leaders to stand up for workers and protect them when the Commonwealth reaches dangerous temperatures. Families depend on it.”
Currently, there are no federal rules mandating basic protections, such as access to water, rest, and shade—despite over 69 million U.S. workers facing a serious risk from heat-related illnesses. From construction sites and warehouses to farms and delivery routes, heat stress kills workers. Experts have found most heat deaths are preventable.
“Our approach to protecting workers is a novel, data driven one that examines where workers are facing the most risk, and tailoring rules to address those areas,” Delegate Hernandez continued. “Heat stress illnesses affect workers, their families, and companies who lose productivity when an employee needs to go to the hospital, or worse. It is economically sound and ethically just. Virginia can and should be a leader on worker safety. I look forward to this bill passing into law and to seeing Virginian workers enjoy fruitful and dignified careers where they can make Virginia the best place to live, work, and raise a family.”
“Heat stress is a serious danger for workers who perform their jobs outdoors like construction workers and farmworkers,” said Ramón Zepeda Ramos, Economic Justice Organizer, Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy. “Reducing the adverse effects of heat stress can be accomplished by simple measures, such as providing water breaks and shade. Given the record-breaking temperatures in recent years, it is urgent that Virginia adopts heat stress standards to address the increase of on-the-job heat-related injuries, illness, and death.”
“Every worker deserves the basic dignity of safety on the job,” said Manuel Gago, Co-Director of the Worker Justice Program at Legal Aid Justice Center. “As temperatures continue to rise across Virginia, Virginia workers are bearing the brunt of this crisis. Heat stress can be deadly, and no one should have to risk their health or life just to earn a paycheck. The policies we are proposing are more than regulations—they’re about valuing people, ensuring families aren’t shattered by preventable illness, and creating a Virginia where every worker can come home safe at the end of the day.”
“Workers can’t do their job if their safety is at risk,” said Charlotte Brody, Vice President of Health Initiatives, BlueGreen Alliance and a resident of Virginia. “We need common sense regulations that will protect them during the heat of the day and make sure they go home to their families. Water, access to air conditioning, and adequate breaks aren’t privileges—they’re lifesaving prevention measures. We need bold leaders who will stand up for working Virginians.”