HR209: HR209 General Assembly; Workplace Safety and Heat Protection Act; urge passage

This resolution does not create any new law itself. Instead, it formally urges the Georgia General Assembly to pass another proposed bill, referred to by its drafting number LC 46 0977 and titled the Workplace Safety and Heat Protection Act, which would set up protections for workers exposed to extreme heat. The resolution describes the health risks of heat exposure, especially for workers in agriculture, construction, manufacturing, and warehousing, and notes that federal OSHA rules do not currently mandate heat protections. It states that the referenced act would require things like water access, shaded rest areas, mandatory breaks, risk assessments, training, and emergency response plans. The resolution directs the House Clerk to send copies to the Governor, the Commissioner of Labor, and all General Assembly members.

• Formally urges the Georgia General Assembly to pass a separate bill (LC 46 0977, the Workplace Safety and Heat Protection Act).
• States the resolution's support for heat illness protections such as water access, shade, rest breaks, risk assessments, training, and emergency response plans, without enacting them directly.
• Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to distribute copies of the resolution to the Governor, the Commissioner of Labor, and all Georgia General Assembly members.
• Creates no new legal requirements, penalties, or funding on its own since it is a resolution expressing the House's position rather than a law.

Workers in high-heat industries such as agriculture, construction, manufacturing, and warehousing, along with the employers in those industries, the Governor, the Commissioner of Labor, and members of the Georgia General Assembly who would consider the referenced heat protection bill.

The resolution itself changes nothing in daily life, but it signals House support for a separate bill that could require Georgia employers in high-heat industries to provide water, shade, rest breaks, and training, potentially affecting hundreds of thousands of workers if that bill later passes.

• The preamble ('WHEREAS' clauses) cites statistics on heat-related worker injuries and deaths and estimates over 425,000 Georgia workers in high-risk industries.
• The resolved clause urges the General Assembly to swiftly pass LC 46 0977, the Workplace Safety and Heat Protection Act.
• The resolution describes the referenced act's proposed measures: water access, shaded areas, mandatory rest breaks, risk assessments, employee training, and emergency response plans.
• The final clause directs the House Clerk to distribute copies of the resolution to the Governor, the Commissioner of Labor, and all General Assembly members.

1. 2025-02-12House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-02-11House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-02-10House Hopper (House)

• Kim Schofield (D, HD-063)Primary sponsor
• Dewey McClain (D, HD-109)
• Sandra Scott (D, HD-076)
• Sheila Jones (D, HD-060)
• Lydia Glaize (D, HD-067)

• workplace safety
• heat exposure
• worker protections
• labor law
• occupational health