Construction worker Barry Holder drank at least 10 bottles of water while working on a construction site on A Street in South Boston on Wednesday, he said.DAVID L. RYAN/GLOBE STAFF
A federal heat standard is in the works, but is unlikely to take effect any time soon.
CAMBRIDGE — As the stifling heat bore down Wednesday, construction workers building a parking garage near Kendall Square sat down in the shade to take a break. It was only lunchtime, and the temperature was already climbing into the 90s.
Nearby was an even cooler refuge: a worksite trailer with air conditioner. The workers use it for quick breaks of five or 10 minutes to cool down, said Joe Davey, 31. Such respites are usually not allowed by the bosses. But with the oppressive weather of the past three days, “everyone’s on the same page,” added another worker, Tom Parmensi, 52.
“We know it’s bad,” Parmensi added. “Everyone knows it.”
As in most states, workers in Massachusetts are almost entirely reliant on the goodwill of their employers and their own precautions to protect them from the dangers of extreme heat. Some unionized workplaces bargain for heat-related accommodations such as more frequent breaks and earlier start times to beat the heat of the day. But in general, workplace advocates and labor law experts said, there are few legal protections in place.
Climate change has made heat waves hotter and longer, and generally has increased average temperatures in the region. That’s expected to worsen if greenhouse gas emissions continue: By the middle of this century, heat index values over 100 degrees are projected to be three times more common in the Northeastern US than they are now. On Wednesday, the heat index value in Boston reached 107 degrees.
“The universe of people who are under threat at work from extreme heat is growing every year,” said Sharon Block, executive director of the Center for Labor and a Just Economy at Harvard Law School.
In the Northeast, heat waves are a uniquely high risk to workers, said Madeleine Scammell, a professor of environmental health at Boston University’s School of Public Health. People who live in northern climates tend to be less acclimated to heat stress on their bodies. And while New Englanders will become more acclimated later in the summer and fall, Scammell said, the first hot spell of the season can be particularly dangerous.
When the body cannot cool itself, a person can succumb to heat exhaustion or heat stroke, which can damage vital organs. Symptoms of heat-related illness include headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion, and hot skin, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Extreme heat can also worsen chronic conditions including kidney disease, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease as the heart and kidneys are strained in an attempt to cool the body.
Davey, the 31-year-old construction worker in Kendall Square, said he felt lightheaded Tuesday after working in an area with a shiny surface that was radiating the sun’s heat back toward him. He took a break to hydrate.
For Davey, lightheadedness was thankfully the worst of his symptoms, he said, and the feeling passed. To avoid getting sick, Davey said that he wears thin and light-colored clothing and rolls up his pants to feel the breeze. Workers also try to keep an eye on one another.
In the worst cases, extreme heat is deadly; it is the leading weather-related cause of death in the US. Between 2018 and 2022, the last five years for which data is available, more than 200 workers in the US died on the job from extreme heat, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (almost certainly a dramatic undercount, experts said).
Many nonoffice workplaces in New England don’t have air conditioning, workplace advocates said, since hot summers have not historically been a major cause for concern in the region.
The US Department of Labor is developing regulations to protect workers from the heat, but Block said that process can take years and any changes are unlikely to take effect before the end of the year (and it could be longer). Then, any new rules could face legal challenges from the business community, she said.
“The courts have become incredibly hostile over the past few years to [the Occupational Safety and Health Administration] exercising their regulatory authority,” Block said. “Agencies have to be really cautious.”
Earlier this week, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu declared a heat emergency in the city, opening cooling centers and urging residents to know the signs of heat-related illness and to call 311 for information about how to stay safe in the heat.
Education, though, can only go so far, advocates said. John Walkey, director of climate justice and waterfront initiatives at GreenRoots, an environmental justice nonprofit organization, said his organization distributes heat safety tips to workers and residents in East Boston and Chelsea that include limiting physical activity during the hottest parts of the day and staying inside.
However, he’s noticed that many don’t take its advice — because they have to work. Construction workers, kitchen service workers, roofers, and gardeners can’t avoid the heat.
“It’s not like they can just work from home in the air conditioning,” Walkey said. “These are folks who are otherwise in relatively good health, but they’re just being placed under very extreme conditions that are getting more extreme because of climate change.
Boston, like the vast majority of other cities across the United States, does not have a heat-workplace standard, experts said. However, both the city and the state distribute information to employers about how to protect workers. The Massachusetts Department of Labor Standards also has a free consultation program that trains employers and employees on how to avoid workplace illness and injury, including heat-related illness, and distributes templates that employers can use to create heat-illness prevention plans.
Employers are also broadly required by OSHA to maintain a safe workplace, labor advocates pointed out. So, even without a heat-specific regulation, workers may be able to file workplace hazard complaints if it’s unreasonably hot.
Rick Rabin, a trainer and technical consultant at the Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health, a worker advocacy organization, said that pressuring employers as a group or with a union for cooler workplace conditions can be more fruitful because individual workers can often be hesitant to complain about workplace conditions for fear of retaliation. Employers, he said, ought to proactively implement more frequent breaks and access to water and provide shade to outdoor workers when it’s hot. There’s no need to wait for technical regulations, a fine, or a union dispute.
“It’s common sense,” Rabin said.
Some cities have implemented regulations for water and rest breaks, but generally those rules are limited to public employees or contractors for the city. In Phoenix, for example, the City Council in March approved an ordinance requiring city contractors and their subcontractors whose workers are outside to provide rest areas, shade, water, and air conditioning. The ordinance also requires training to recognize signs of heat stress.
In downtown Boston, tourism industry workers have made small adjustments for the heat this week.
Bill Garfield, 50, has worked at a Boston merchandise cart on Boston Common for 12 years. He sits at an angle that isn’t directly in the sun’s path and shields himself with umbrellas. But even at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the temperature was in the mid-90s and Garfield was sweating.
He loads up on four bottles of Gatorades, and workers at a nearby ice cream cart let him store the drinks so they stay cold throughout the day. If he wants a break to cool off or go to the bathroom, he has to ask a friend to keep an eye on his cart —meaning he takes few breaks throughout his 10-hour workday.
“It’s not easy,” Garfield said. The thing he looks forward to most at the end of his workday this week? Going to his home in Roxbury, where he has air conditioning.