A new Florida law prohibiting local governments from implementing workplace heat safety rules will likely pressure the federal government to step in and take action to protect workers, experts say.

But federal rules are years away, they say, leaving it up to employers to create safe worksites as temperatures rise. 

The law, signed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on April 11, had the support of some in the business community, who cautioned that heat regulations created by individual, sometimes small jurisdictions would harm companies that operate statewide.  They contend a state or federal heat standard is preferable.

“A patchwork of local government heat safety regulations only leads to confusion for job creators and does not lead to safer workplaces,” said Carolyn Johnson, vice president of government affairs with the Florida Chamber of Commerce.

Opponents of the legislation, citing the need for workplace guidelines with strict enforcement protocols, say Florida has yet to address the issue on a state level and that the lengthy process for the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been too slow.

“The evidence is abundantly clear and overwhelming that our farm working communities and more broadly our communities that have to work outside are exposed to Florida heat and an undue amount of stress just from an environmental perspective,” said Ernesto Ruiz, research and agroecology coordinator with the Apopka, Florida-based Farmworker Association of Florida.

Supporters of the new law say any regulation governing workplace heat exposure should be at the state or federal level to avoid confusion for companies that work across jurisdictional lines such as those in construction and transportation.

“It’s not about limiting the ability to enhance worker safety at all,” said Carol Bowen, chief lobbyist for the Florida chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors, which supported the legislation. “It’s about doing it in a uniform and consistent fashion.”

OSHA has been working on a heat rule and will likely put forth a proposal within the next few years, said Jordan Barab, who was deputy assistant secretary of OSHA under the Obama Administration.

OSHA already recommends rest breaks, shade and hydration for employees who work in extreme heat conditions, Ms. Bowen said.

The new law says Florida would step in if OSHA doesn’t adopt a heat exposure standard by July 2028.  

Florida isn’t the only state that’s putting the onus on federal OSHA—a similar law went into effect in Texas in September 2023 and is now being challenged in court.

Worker safety advocates say the time is now for heat regulations and that without a federal mandate, local jurisdictions – which face shorter timelines – should be able to step in.

“This is not rocket science on how to protect workers,” Mr. Barab said. “So, again, it’s just like a total cave-in to the business community and putting workers at increased risk, especially as we enter the summer.”

Mr. Ruiz, of the farmworkers group, noted that while the business community has expressed opposition to local heat safety regulations, employers will still be paying for workers who become injured, sick or die from workplace heat.

“It’s just in the interest of business to protect their workers,” he said.

The construction industry is particularly dangerous as workers face the “compounded effect” of high environmental heat and that generated by heavy machinery, said Kyle Hubregtse, Houston-based CEO of Kenzen Inc., which makes wearables to monitor worker heat exposure.

“This (heat) problem exists, and companies have to deal with it,” Mr. Hubregtse said.