BILL NUMBER: S3412
SPONSOR: RAMOS
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the labor law, in relation to regulating the temperature
of all indoor and outdoor worksites
 
PURPOSE:
This legislation regulates the high temperature in indoor and outdoor
worksites within the scope of the article.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Temperature
Extreme Mitigation (TEMP) act"
Section 2. Legislative Findings and Intent
Section 3. Amends labor law by adding Article 20-D
742. Scope: The industries of Agriculture; Construction; Landscaping;
Car wash services; Commercial Shipping; Food Service; Warehousing;
Transport Service; and Building service work
743. Definitions: Terms such as employee, employer, indoor worksite,
outdoor worksite, heat stress threshold, heat illness, and personal
protective equipment are defined.
744. Heat Regulation By Employers: Heat-specific standards. The employer
shall fulfill the requirements when employees are in an outdoor or
indoor worksite and experiencing conditions at or exceeding a heat
stress threshold of eighty or more degrees Fahrenheit.
745. Education and training:
1. Training. The department shall create a training curriculum outlining
the signs of heat illness and the necessary medical responses. Such
training shall be administered by the employer at time of hiring.
2. Mandated signage and materials. The department shall promulgate
signage and educational materials that are required to be made available
to employees by their employer in 12 most common languages in the state.
3. Unlawful retaliation.
4. The department shall establish a statewide outreach campaign to
educate employees on the heat illness standards established and ensure
that employers are providing access to proper signage and materials.
746. Enforcement. The department shall promulgate rules and regulations
that ensure compliance with the article.
Section 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it
shall have become law.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New Yorkers, working both in outdoor and indoor sites, are exposed to
extreme temperatures due to climate change. This legislation includes
necessary temperature standards to be followed by employers within the
scope to avoid undue harm to employees. Every year, New York city has
high numbers of heat-related emergency department visits, hospital
admissions, and deaths as found and declared by the NY state legisla-
ture. According to the New York City Office of the Mayor, each year
there are an estimated 450 heat-related ED visits, 150 heat-related
hospital admissions, 10 heat stroke deaths, and 350 heat-exacerbated
deaths, caused by heat-worsening existing chronic conditions. By declar-
ing that the government is obligated to ensure that employers provide
safe conditions for their employees, this bill seeks to mitigate as much
as possible the harmful effects of heat within the workplace.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-24: S1604F (Ramos) Reported and committed to Finance / A8935A
(Bronson) Reported and committed to ways and means
 
FISCAL IMPACT:
TBD
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
on or before such effective date.