CPWR Provides Critical Resources For Employers and Workers

On May 22, OSHA kicked off its annual effort to fight heat illness, reminding employers that they have the power to prevent thousands of cases of heat exhaustion (and even save dozens of lives!) this summer by offering employees periodic water, rest and shade breaks.

Center for Construction Research and Training provides free online access to critical resources workers and employers can use to stay safe during the summer heat. You can find them in three different online homes:

1. At www.cpwr.com you can find a simple and straightforward toolbox talk on preventing heat illness. It's a printable, two-sided document with a graphic illustration on the front and a short, interactive script on the back. A presenter can hold the graphic up for view while referring to the notes. (While you are there, check out some of the other 52 topics in the toolbox talks series!)

2. At Construction Solutions, CPWR's online source for construction contractors addressing common occupational hazards, you can find an entire heat stress program - and also information on specially designed PPE like cooling vests. (And why not look at ideas for addressing some other construction hazards that concern your craft and trade?)

3. And in eLCOSH, the electronic Library of Construction Occupational Safety and Health, we have collected dozens of items from a variety of sources addressing heat exposure, from OSHA's Quick Card on Heat Stress to a Heat Training Guide produced by the Labor Occupational Health Program at UC Berkeley. (When you've consulted eLCOSH on heat you can search for other resources, narrowing by job site, hazard, trade or all three.)