Washington — OSHA is asking representatives from small businesses, as well as local governments and nonprofit organizations, to weigh in on how a standard to protect workers from heat illness would affect small entities.
OSHA, the Small Business Administration, and the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs are expected to convene a Small Business Advocacy Review panel in the coming months. Small entity representatives will have a chance to suggest recommendations for a standard, and the panel is expected to issue a report based on that feedback.
Representatives will participate in video conference calls with a small group of other representatives for about three hours.
“This is a very valuable step in the regulatory process where SERs can discuss concerns and current practices for protecting workers from heat-related injuries and illnesses,” OSHA says.
The agency published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking in October 2021. Record-breaking temperatures in several parts of the United States this summer have prompted calls for OSHA to move quickly to issue a standard.
