LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — We've been talking about this all year. And now, following a record number of heat-related complaints made to the Nevada Occupational Safety and Health Administration this year, the state division's heat illness regulation is now in effect.
The Nevada Secretary of State filed the regulation earlier this month.
Victoria Carreon, the administrator for the Division of Industrial Relations, which oversees OSHA, said the process took about four years.
"We had various ideas of how to do the regulation," said Carreon.
"Ultimately, what proved to be successful was instead of looking at a set temperature that would kick off any requires, we found that it was more successful and we were able to get much better stakeholder buy-in by having just a requirement that every employer do a job hazard analysis for each job type classification."
Now state businesses with more than 10 employees must perform a job hazard analysis, build a written plan based on that analysis, designate emergency procedures, and provide heat-related training to workers.
Channel 13 spoke with Santy Luangpraseuth, owner of Bambu Desserts, back in June about the problems her business is facing with heat. She is in the process of expanding her business with two more locations and says this regulation couldn't have come at a better time.
WATCH: Indoor workplaces made majority of OSHA heat complaints in 2023
"They should have already implemented it a long time ago," Luangpraseuth said.
In our June report, Luangpraseuth told us she comes to work early to turn the stove off by noon in order to protect the place from overheating.
Carreon said these new regulations are a critical next step.
"We know empirically that heat stress can cause heat illness," Carreon said. "You can have heat exhaustion. You can have heat stroke. Those are very real medical conditions we need to be cognizant of."
According to Nevada OSHA, there were 401 heat-related complaints this year in Southern Nevada. In 2023, that was 300. In 2022, it was 210.
WATCH: It's official: Las Vegas just had its hottest summer on record
Luangpraseuth said she's ready to implement the new measures.
"It's just getting hotter and hotter and our summers are getting longer," said Luangpraseuth. "Every business owner, that is your responsibility to make sure your staff is hydrated and taken care of."
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In the coming weeks, additional guidance for business owners can be found at the Division of Industrial Relations website here.
See the full regulation below:
R131-24AP by christian.hudspeth on Scribd
