Good News On Nevada’s Proposed Heat Illness Regulation

After gathering comments from interested parties, including Kamer Zucker Abbott, Nevada’s Division of Industrial Relations of the Department of Business and Industry has substantially revised and streamlined its proposed heat illness regulation. The revised regulation still requires Nevada employers to mitigate occupational injuries and illnesses resulting from heat exposure in the workplace, but now gives employers more discretion to determine the day-to-day details of how to protect employees from heat.

One of the best changes to the proposed regulation is that the threshold for requiring a program for management of heat illness has been increased from 80 degrees to 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Additionally, rather than specify how much water or what type of shade an employer must provide, the revised regulation now gives the employer the discretion to determine what is appropriate and effective for its workplaces.

The proposed regulation now has three main requirements:

• An employer whose employees are exposed to temperatures at or above 90 degrees Fahrenheit must draft a program for the management of heat illness. The program must include  provisions for water and shade as well as monitoring for heat illness and emergency procedures.
• An employer must provide training on a list of heat-related topics to all supervisors and employees who may be affected by issues relating to heat illness.
• An employer must follow specific procedures if an employee shows signs of heat illness.

Employers and the public are invited to attend a virtual stakeholder meeting on  February 2 at 1:00 p.m. to provide feedback on or ask questions about the proposed regulation. KZA has submitted feedback about the revised regulation and will attend the February 2 meeting. If you have concerns or questions about the proposed regulation, please plan to attend the February 2 meeting and/or contact a KZA attorney.

KZA Employer Report articles are for general information only; they are not intended and should not be construed to be legal advice. Reading or replying to such articles does not establish an attorney-client relationship. In addition, because the subject matters and applicable laws discussed in Employer Report articles are often in a state of change and not always applicable to every type of business entity or organization, readers should consult with counsel before making decisions based on the same.