OSHA Plans ‘Safety Stand Down’ in Southern States

Federal officials and trade groups are asking construction workers to take a break for safety as temperatures increase across the South.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is conducting a one-hour “safety stand-down” in Alabama, Georgia and other Southern states on Tuesday.

The federal agency says the break is meant to increase awareness about the dangers of working in summer heat. It’s asking employers to voluntarily conduct safety briefings focusing on the symptoms of heart-related illnesses during the stand-down.

OSHA has developed educational materials on heat illness in both English and Spanish to use in workplace training.

Regulators say heat exhaustion has killed more than 30 U.S. workers on average each year in the last decade.