The heat is there, and after new actions by the President Joe BidenMore protections are coming for outdoor workers.
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Summer has already gotten off to a sweltering start across the United States.
Many communities, including northeast Florida and southeast Georgia, have reached record temperatures or come close to breaking records in recent weeks.
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Action News Jax Washington correspondent Kirstin Garriss is learning more about how the U.S. government is working to address weather conditions and keep workers safe.
Biden announced new actions to protect workers from the effects of extreme heat on Tuesday, as forecasts for the rest of the summer show warmer than average temperatures across the country.
On Tuesday, the White House established the nation’s first federal safety standard for excessive heat.
The goal of the new initiative is to help keep outdoor workers safe on the job.
Biden said the effort included developing response plans for heat illness, implementing rest breaks and requiring workers to have access to shade and water. The president said the new policies would affect workers across the U.S., especially those who work in agriculture, construction and the U.S. Postal Service.
“Across the country, workers suffer heatstroke or even die while carrying out their work. This new rule will substantially reduce heat-related injuries, illnesses and deaths for the more than 36 million workers to whom this will apply,” Biden said in the announcement.
To read: LIST: Florida Laws to Take Effect July 1
Earlier this year, the US Congress debated a bill supported by Republican lawmakers that would denounce the “Biden administration’s harmful and un-American energy policies” and include a push for greater domestic energy production.”
Meanwhile, the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced billions of dollars in new funding as grants to help states deal with extreme heat, flooding and storms.
To read: First Buc-ee’s travel center catches fire during demolition
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