November 18, 2024 - New Jersey lawmakers are considering a bill that would create an occupational heat-related illness and injury prevention program and occupational heat stress standard to be overseen by the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

A.B. 5022, introduced Thursday, calls for the state before June 1, 2025, to establish guidance “that establishes heat stress levels for employees that, if exceeded, trigger actions by employers to protect employees from heat-related illness and injury” and requires employers “develop, implement, and maintain an effective heat-related illness and injury prevention plan for employees.”

The proposal calls for more than a dozen mandates including water breaks and rest periods for indoor and outdoor workers when heat is deemed excessive and “postponing tasks that are non-essential until the excessive heat condition subsides.”

Click on the link below to view the proposed legislation.