Province urged to provide better 'heat stress' protection for workers

Hotter summers making for 'unsafe' working conditions, MPP says

- ROB FERGUSON

The early arrival of hot, sticky weather has the NDP and Ontario Federation of Labour pressing Premier Doug Ford’s government for stronger “heat stress” protections for workers.

“Ontario summers are getting hotter and hotter leading to unsafe working conditions for many workers,” New Democrat MPP Peter Tabuns (Toronto-Danforth) said Wednesday, noting the trend will worsen as climate change accelerates.

Tabuns and OFL president Laura Walton said improved protections are needed for both outdoor and indoor workers in jobs where they are subject to high temperatures, such as in schools without air conditioning or factories where air conditioning is not feasible.

Measures could include access to cooling rooms, cold water and shade, more breaks, and regulated or legislated standards for when workers are entitled to get out of the heat to avoid medical problems that can lead to serious health consequences, such as heat stroke and possibly death.