Stressing the Need for Heat Safety

On April 9, as part of its monthly meetings held on Saturdays, MassCOSH’s Worker Center held a training on the dangers of excessive heat for low-wage workers who work in hot environments.

For the 19 workers in attendance, the training went over OSHA definitions of heat stress, prevention methods to stay safe when it’s hot, and how to identify the symptoms of heat stress and heatstroke. As temperatures begin to heat up, trainings like this will be critical for workers to understand how they can stay safe on the job and stand up for their rights, including understanding their employers’ responsibilities to protect them from dangerously hot working environments. MassCOSH has also joined with its allies across the country to support OSHA’s effort to create a new standard for hazardous heat conditions.

As a worker health and safety organization, MassCOSH offers a variety of trainings for workers in Massachusetts and beyond. Last month, MassCOSH conducted a Spanish language OSHA-10 training, a 10-hour safety course that covers general safety and health hazards for entry-level workers, for construction workers in Rhode Island. MassCOSH will be holding the same OSHA-10 training for workers in Chelsea later this month. For more information on the trainings, MassCOSH offers or to schedule an OSHA-10 or other training in English or Spanish, email Jazmin@masscosh.org