Heat Justice Now Coalition and Organizing Resilience are kicking off 'Heat Week' to support OSHA's proposed heat stress rule and bring attention to the need for worker protections nationwide.
WATCH: Why We Need Strong Heat Protections: National Week of Action
WASHINGTON, June 16, 2025 -- The week of June 16, worker organizations from across the country will come together for a Nationwide Week of Action to Protect Workers from Extreme Heat called Fired Up For Heat Justice. This event coincides with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) public hearing on the proposed heat stress rule.
Currently, there are no federal rules mandating basic protections, such as access to water, rest, and shade, despite more than 69 million U.S. workers facing a serious risk from heat-related illnesses. From construction sites and warehouses to farms and schools, heat stress is killing and sickening workers. These deaths are preventable.
"I've seen firsthand what extreme heat can do," said Jazmin Moreno-Dominguez, Organizing Manager at Agave Community Threads. "My father came home from work one day severely dehydrated, drenched in sweat, and unable to move for days. No family should have to witness that. We shouldn't wait until someone collapses to realize protections are necessary."
Last year, the Biden administration proposed a rule to reduce the number of worker-related deaths, injuries, and illnesses that occur when workers are exposed to excessive heat. Time constraints meant that the rule was never finalized, but it would have been the first federal standard aimed at regulating the increasing dangers of climate change. The Trump administration has since pushed to roll back regulations and has signaled its reluctance to adopt any federal protections for workers.
Lack of faith in the administration's commitment to finishing the rule has led advocates to focus on solutions employers, schools, states, and other entities can implement NOW to protect worker health—along with the health of their school children, families, and communities.
"For years, workers like me have spoken out and demanded basic heat protections in our jobs, like the right to drink cool water and rest in the shade," said Ana Mejía, a WeCount! member. "As a plant nursery worker in Florida, I know what it's like to work all day in 90- or 100-degree temperatures and be denied my human right to water, shade, and rest.
"With my own eyes, I've seen my co-workers get sick and faint from the heat, only to be yelled at by their supervisors and told to get back to work. This is what we live through every day as workers in the nursery industry to produce plants for millions of consumers in the United States. I'm standing together with workers from different states and industries across the country to say: none of our lives are negotiable. No worker should have to worry about dying on the job and not making it home to their families. It's time to respond to this crisis and save lives."
"There are currently no national heat standards from OSHA to protect workers on the job," said BlueGreen Alliance Executive Director Jason Walsh. "Lives depend on taking action now. Every summer is getting hotter, and we need standards in place to ensure people have adequate access to shade, rest, and water during scorching temperatures. We stand with workers and demand the Trump administration take action to protect their lives."
The Week of Action highlights the pressing need for national standards. Organizers will be giving testimony at the OSHA public hearing during the week of June 16, and on Tuesday, the Heat Justice Now coalition will convene in Washington, D.C., from 12:00 to 1:00 pm for a solidarity rally at the corner of 3rd Street NW and Constitution Avenue NW. Additionally, at least a dozen local actions will take place nationwide throughout the week.
To learn more about Fired Up For Heat Justice: Nationwide Week of Action to Protect Workers from Extreme Heat, visit heatjusticenow.org. A full list of organizations supporting the coalition is below:
Arizona Heat Standards Coalition, BlueGreen Alliance, El Futuro Es Nuestro, Federation of American Scientists, Florida Student Power Network, Legal Aid Justice Center, Legal Aid at Work and Raizes Collective, Make the Road Nevada, Make the Road New Jersey, National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (COSH), National Employment Law Project, Organizing Resilience, Public Citizen, Rural Women's Health Project, Step Up Louisiana, Union of Southern Service Workers, Valley Forward, WeCount, Workers Defense Project.
ABOUT HEAT JUSTICE NOW
Heat Justice Now is a nationwide coalition of organizations working to protect the health of 69 million workers at risk from extreme heat. This summer and beyond, they are fighting to hold OSHA accountable and spotlight dozens of active state and local campaigns, showing how to protect workers from heat. Learn more about Heat Justice Now and Fired Up for Heat Justice by visiting heatjusticenow.org.
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