Maryland Injury Attorney Blog
Seems like summers in Maryland are getting hotter and hotter, and most of us can’t wait to escape into the comfort of air conditioning. However, many workers do not have that luxury. That includes a number of professions including emergency personnel (police officers, EMTs, and firefighters), construction workers and other contractors, utility workers, agricultural workers, transportation workers, housekeepers, and others laboring outdoors and in non-air-conditioned environments.
Heat-related illness can take a range of forms leading to work-related injury and death, including heat stroke, heat exhaustion, heat syncope (fainting and/or dizziness), and heat cramps. Fatigue and disorientation brought on by heat can lead to serious accidents on the job.
The U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed federal workplace standards to protect workers in the heat, however those may take months to pass (and could be delayed depending on the election results). Only five states have heat-related regulations to protect workers, and none in our region.