Phoenix OKs heat safety regulation for contractors to protect outdoor workers
Construction and airport workers applauded the Phoenix City Council on Tuesday after it passed a new ordinance requiring contractors to enact heat safety protections for outdoor workers.
The rule requires employers who work with the city to draft a heat safety plan that provides access to free and cool water for all employees, availability to take breaks as needed and for hydration, access to shade or air conditioning, and training.
The rule would also require employers to deploy practices that help employees adapt to the heat, and air conditioning in vehicles with enclosed cabs by May 1, 2025. The new ordinance takes effect in May.
Contractors who fail to meet the requirements risk losing business with the city and eligibility to work with Phoenix in the future.
Assistant City Manager Lori Bays said the ordinance is estimated to affect roughly 10,000 Phoenix workers.
The council approved the ordinance 7-0. Councilmembers Jim Waring and Debra Stark were absent. The council also directed City Manager Jeff Barton to create an advisory committee to recommend best heat protection practices. The committee is supposed to include workers, contractors, community members and city staff.
Bays said those committee members' expertise would be used to craft related provisions in future contracts.
Council chambers Tuesday were filled with dozens of airport workers and labor union leaders who applauded the effort but urged more attention and action from the city in the future. They paid special thanks to Councilmembers Yassamin Ansari, Betty Guardado and Laura Pastor, whom they said supported workers.
Multiple airport employees took to the podium to share stories of working in vehicles and cleaning airplanes without air conditioning, growing sick and, in some cases, being hospitalized. They said they feared retaliation and believed the ordinance would be a useful first step in protecting themselves.
One worker said he feared just the thought of working in the summer heat. Every season, he said he wonders if he'll be able to face it or have to quit.
"It's great to see the city if finally listening ... but much more work needs to be done," said passenger services agent Cecilia Ortiz.
Tuesday's approval makes Phoenix the first city in the state to codify heat safety rules for outdoor workers — at a time when other hot cities are struggling to pass similar regulations.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed a law that banned cities from creating labor regulations beyond what the state requires. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis also banned local governments from passing heat protections in Florida.
Tucson's City Council last September signaled its desire for a worker heat safety ordinance and could come next.
Phoenix's requirements are similar to recommendations the Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health issued in its heat "Emphasis Program" last summer, meaning employers should, in theory, mostly be in compliance already. The exception is the stipulation on air conditioning in enclosed vehicles.
But codification mandates the protections and provides a mechanism by which Phoenix can enforce them.
Current protections for workers in Arizona are limited to the state's "general duty" clause, a law that requires employers to address hazards that could cause serious physical injury or death.
Juanita Constible, a senior climate and health advisor for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said enforcing those protections is difficult.
"You have to jump through a bunch of legal hoops. There's a lot of evidence required ... under general duty," Constible said. It "gives employers a fair bit of wiggle room to get out of the citation."
Even when employers can't shake the citation, the penalties are often low enough that companies factor it into the cost of business and don't change practices, Constible said.
Phoenix's ordinance, which gives companies the opportunity to fix mistakes but otherwise resorts to contract suspension, cancellation and termination, or debarment, could make a difference.
Debarment, or preventing a contractor from future work with the city, "could make or break a small contractor," Constible said.
The Arizona General Contractors Association, which represents the construction industry, opposed the ordinance in a letter sent March 7. The letter called the ordinance redundant and unnecessary because federal regulators are considering regulations that, if passed, would take precedence over the city's ordinance.
The group also criticized the ordinance as unclear, saying phrases like "access" to air conditioning were too vague, and that the section on penalties needed to include information on how to appeal.
Councilmember Ann O'Brien also expressed concern about the appeal process during Tuesday's meeting, but said she approved the regulation because it was a step in the right direction.
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Record hot summer sparks need for action
The ordinance comes after Phoenix experienced its hottest and most fatal summer on record in 2023.
There were 395 heat-related deaths in Phoenix alone last year. Nearly 700 in Maricopa County. The temperature exceeded 110 degrees for more than 31 days. The overnight lows stayed above 90 degrees for 16 days straight.
UPS workers driving without air conditioning nearly went on strike. One delivery driver went viral after a Ring video camera caught him collapsing in the heat in Scottsdale. A 26-year-old farmworker in Yuma also collapsed. He died, leaving behind two children. Workers at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport said they were not provided shade, water and adequate medical care for injured workers, and filed a complaint with the Arizona Department of Occupational Safety and Health in August.
The record-breaking heat, which garnered global media attention, prompted government officials to improve the 2024 response plans at multiple levels. Gov. Katie Hobbs hired the state's first ever chief heat officer, Eugene Livar. Arizona Department of Health Services hired a "heat relief coordinator."
Phoenix will open overnight heat respite centers and extend library hours at three locations this summer. The Office of Heat Response and Mitigation is revamping its response efforts this year, including an incident management team that has previously been used for events like the Super Bowl.
The worker safety ordinance is the city's latest action, and it aligns with guidance heat experts have been suggesting for years.
The meeting was the last for Councilwoman Yassamin Ansari, who resigns Friday to run for Congress.
She urged the city to keep pushing for more heat protections.
"Hopefully this will be the beginning of stronger policies," Ansari said.
Taylor Seely covers Phoenix for The Arizona Republic / azcentral.com. Reach her at tseely@arizonarepublic.com or by phone at 480-476-6116.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix enacts heat safety ordinance to protect outdoor workers
