Construction workers working on a house on a sunny day.

Credit: Pixabay

Trump administration may weaken or block first national workplace heat protections

A new federal rule to protect workers from extreme heat faces uncertainty as the Trump administration considers rolling it back or replacing it with a weaker version.

Claire Brown reports for The New York Times.

In short:

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) begins public hearings this week on a rule proposed under former President Biden that would require employers to offer water and rest breaks in high heat.
Business groups and Republican lawmakers have pushed back, arguing that such rules would be burdensome and that workers in hotter regions are already acclimated.
Worker safety advocates fear the Trump administration will dilute the rule, which could override stricter state protections already in place.

Key quote:

“All heat-related deaths are preventable because they all result from an overexposure that can be prevented.”

— Dr. John Balbus, former co-chair of a federal working group on heat

Why this matters:

As climate change drives record-breaking heat across the country, more workers face life-threatening conditions on the job. Outdoor and manual laborers — farmhands, delivery drivers, construction crews — bear the brunt of these conditions without consistent federal safeguards. Heat doesn’t just cause dehydration or fainting; it stresses the cardiovascular system, raising risks of stroke and heart attacks. But despite rising deaths, federal protections have lagged. Without national standards, workers’ safety depends on a patchwork of state laws, some of which are now being dismantled.

www.nytimes.com

Trump administration may weaken or block first national workplace heat protections

Fossil fuel advocate shapes Republican push to cut renewable energy funding

World leaders back ocean treaty and new marine reserves, but critics say action still lags

New protections for nature must account for climate risks, scientists say

Alaska braces for rising heat as warming climate shatters old norms

Mercury contamination in Arctic wildlife may persist for generations despite global emission cuts

Trump’s funding freeze threatens Alaska village’s clean energy future

Navajo and Hopi families face renewed housing, health threats as federal funding for clean heating is cut

Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

One facility has emitted cancer-causing chemicals into waterways at levels up to 520% higher than legal limits.

Pennsylvania health advocates say Trump’s first 100 days in office have caused “100 harms” to local communities

“They're terrorizing these scientists because they want to keep them silent.”

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

"The reality is, we are not exposed to one chemical at a time.”

Two years into his term, has Gov. Shapiro kept his promises to regulate Pennsylvania’s fracking industry?

A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations

An open letter from EPA staff to the American public

“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.