Miami-Dade takes landmark step toward protecting outdoor workers from rising heat
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With record heat scorching South Florida, Miami-Dade County took a long-delayed but landmark first step toward protecting the scores of workers who labor in the sweltering sun.
The Miami-Dade County Commission introduced a bill Tuesday that would create workplace heat protections for roughly 80,000 people in construction and agriculture trades in the county. At least two agricultural workers have died this year from heat-related issues in South Florida, one long before the latest dangerous heat wave still baking the state.
The heat standard for outdoor workers, sponsored by commissioners Kionne McGhee and Marleine Bastien, would require companies to give workers water and a 10-minute break in the shade every two hours on days when the heat index hits 90 degrees. Companies would also be required to train workers and supervisors on heat safety. Companies that repeatedly fail to do so could face fines up to $3,000 per violation per day.
“One death in the hot sun is one too many,” said McGhee, who later spoke at a press conference about his experience growing up in Homestead and working as a bean picker alongside his mother. “Give these people what they need, something I didn’t have growing up, and that is simply water, sun protection, shade.”
There are more than 300,000 outdoor workers in Miami-Dade County, although this bill only covers the roughly 80,000 who work in construction and agriculture. Outdoor workers are 35 times more likely to die of heat-related illness than the general population. In Miami-Dade, heat kills 34 people a year, on average, and hospitalizes hundreds more.
The bill passed a first vote 11-0 after a dozen workers, doctors and activists spoke up in favor of it during the public comment period. It still needs to pass a committee vote and a final vote in front of the full commission to become law.
“I’m a heatstroke survivor. I thank god I’m still here to share my experience because I have coworkers who died and didn’t have the same chance to be here,” said Sandra Asencio, who has worked on farms and nurseries in South Florida for 18 years. “We don’t want any more deaths in our workplaces.”
Tweaks coming in committee
The bill now heads to a committee hearing, where it could be changed or voted down. Similar proposals have been floated for two years but has never advanced to a vote.
McGhee, whose district covers much of south Dade’s farm country, said he expected the bill to “bring together those who are employees and employers” and ultimately “pass with major support.”
He said he’s been working with farm and nursery owners to get the heat standard passed.
“I’m a big supporter of agriculture, and the industry means a lot to me because I represent them in my district, so I work with them back and forth,” he said. “There are some things that need to be tweaked, that we’re going to tweak, but we have time to do that now.”
McGhee declined to say which parts of the bill need to be tweaked, and instead suggested that what needs to change is “the narrative of people out there who are trying to pit the agricultural community against those who are working to provide food from farm to table.”
If the bill makes it out of committee, it will face a final vote at a future commission meeting.
Que Calor campaign
WeCount!, an advocacy group that represents outdoor workers in South Florida, has been pushing for a workplace heat standard since 2021 as part of its “Que Calor” campaign. Similar bills seeking statewide standards also have failed to advance in the Florida Legislature.
Read More: In Florida, the heat can kill. But there are no laws to protect its many outdoor workers
The county bill, introduced a month after a Miami Herald series on the rising risks of extreme heat, hews closely to WeCount’s proposals.
“We are excited to see the introduction of this legislation that is as close as possible to what we were originally demanding,” said WeCount! co-director Oscar Londoño.
Nearly 100 people wearing blue WeCount! shirts sat in the commission chamber to watch the vote. After the bill passed its first hurdle, activists, workers and their family members filed into the hallway to celebrate.
Pedro Marcos Raymundo, a WeCount! member who works in construction and roofing, said he’s particularly happy about the bill’s requirement that companies train workers to recognize the symptoms of heat-related illnesses and give first aid.
“They can explain how I can protect myself when it’s very hot out,” he said. “If a coworker faints, what should I do to help him? Without help, he could die. We don’t have the education to know what to do.”
Record-breaking heat
As commissioners voted on the workplace heat standard bill on Tuesday, Miami-Dade County was once again under a heat advisory, with the heat index expected to creep north of 105 degrees. The heat index combines temperature and humidity readings to give a sense of how hot it feels in the shade.
On extreme heat days like this, the National Weather Service recommends avoiding strenuous activity, getting out of the sun and drinking plenty of water. But thousands of outdoor workers in Miami-Dade County have little choice but to go to work and labor outside in direct sunlight — in some cases, with limited access to water and no breaks throughout the day.
Tuesday was the 20th heat advisory day in a sweltering summer that has shattered all-time temperature records in Miami-Dade County and around the world. On Sunday, the National Weather Service issued the county’s first ever heat warning, as the heat index topped 110 degrees.
Climate change has made Miami-Dade County’s hottest days more common. In the 1960s, daily temperatures reached 90 degrees only for about a quarter of the year. Now, temperatures reach 90 for about a third of the year. By 2050, scientists expect 90-degree days to make up half the year in Miami-Dade.
Each of these hot days creates another opportunity for workers to become severely dehydrated or suffer heatstroke, which could land them in the hospital or even kill them. At least two farmworkers have already died this year because of the heat. But even when heat doesn’t kill, chronic exposure to high temperatures can lead to diseases like kidney failure over time.
A narrower heat standard
Miami-Dade County has more than 300,000 outdoor workers, representing about a quarter of the county’s total workforce, according to U.S. Census Bureau data compiled by the Union of Concerned Scientists.
The heat standard proposed Tuesday only covers agricultural and construction workers. Miami-Dade County has about 5,000 farmworkers and about 74,000 construction workers, according to census data. The rest of the outdoor workforce, including landscapers, maintenance workers, delivery drivers and so on, are not covered by the new heat standard.
WeCount! originally pushed for a broader version of the heat standard, which would include landscapers and other outdoor workers, but is now supporting the narrower version introduced Tuesday. The standard also doesn’t apply to small businesses with fewer than five employees.
This climate report is funded by Florida International University, the Knight Foundation and the David and Christina Martin Family Foundation in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. The Miami Herald retains editorial control of all content.
This story was originally published July 18, 2023 at 4:46 PM with the headline "Miami-Dade takes landmark step toward protecting outdoor workers from rising heat."
