Let them cook
Greg Abbot condemns construction workers to death:
In a week when parts of the state are getting triple-digit temperatures and weather officials urge Texans to stay cool and hydrated, Gov. Greg Abbott gave final approval to a law that will eliminate local rules mandating water breaks for construction workers.
Abbott and the Texas legislators who wrote and passed this law are knowingly, deliberately increasing the risk of heat stroke and death for construction workers in a very hot state. The deaths will happen.
The law will nullify ordinances enacted by Austin in 2010 and Dallas in 2015 that established 10-minute breaks every four hours so that construction workers can drink water and protect themselves from the sun. It also prevents other cities from passing such rules in the future. San Antonio has been considering a similar ordinance.
People die that way. It’s not unusual.
Texas is the state where the most workers die from high temperatures, government data shows. At least 42 workers died in Texas between 2011 and 2021 from environmental heat exposure, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Workers’ unions claim this data doesn’t fully reflect the magnitude of the problem because heat-related deaths are often recorded under a different primary cause of injury.
But the bosses don’t want to give away those ten minutes every four hours, so pfffffffft, let them die, there are always more crossing the border.
Unions expect heat-related deaths to go up if mandated water breaks go away.
“Construction is a deadly industry. Whatever the minimum protection is, it can save a life. We are talking about a human right,” said Ana Gonzalez, deputy director of policy and politics at the Texas AFL-CIO. “We will see more deaths, especially in Texas’ high temperatures.”
The National Weather Service is forecasting highs over 100 degrees in several Texas cities for at least the next seven days.
Never mind, Abbot and the legislators are inside with the AC going.
H/t Rev David Brindley
Two thoughts:
How much money does the construction industry give the Texas Republican Party?
How is it that the state government gets to over-ride local, municipal ordinances like this? Is there no demarkation of legislative authority in Texas? What would happen if the Federal government over-rode the State’s over-ride? I know it probably can’t happen, but the State government would be screaming blue murder. Isn’t this an example of Big Government over-reach that Republicans are supposed to hate?
This shows that we can never let down our guard. There will always be pressure against laws, rules and regulations that potentially stand in the way of somebody making money. Child labour and slavery could easily return in the right circumstances, the road being paved by gerrymandering and restrictions on voting right. It would all be perfectly justified, and perfectly legal, of course.
It’s infuriating that left-ish parties that would traditionally resist these types of measures have effectively discredited themselves by embracing trans ideology. How many voters, when confronted by the obvious lies and bullying that “allies” are compelled to support, will balk at trusting anything else such a party might propose?
Could be time for America, well Texas anyway, to produce another Joe Hill.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8Kxq9uFDes
…but why? I mean, I get just not having safety laws on the books, but to actively draft and then pass a piece of legislation takes at least some effort. Why on earth did this get drafted in the first place? As presented it’s simply cruel for the sake of being cruel. What is the point, or more precisely why was the point deemed so pressing as to draw legislators’ attention in the first place?
Right-wing populism in action. Hard-working construction workers don’t need effete liberal elites at city hall telling them they have to stop and drink some water.
I wonder what OSHA’s regulations regarding this are. I vaguely recall reading something last summer about OSHA issuing guidelines or considering regulations regarding working in such heat. I’m on JJ Keller’s email list. So probably in one of their emails. Not likely that OSHA will do anything unless there is an incident or they get reports, though. I’ll bet companies are intimidating workers to not report.
And then there’s the gap between regulations and actual practice. I’ve written here before about working in the Parks Department with a supervisor who was specifically told to take plenty of breaks, stay in the shade, avoid strenuous tasks, etc, during a heat wave, and he promptly took us to a job on concrete in the direct shadeless sun and made us work straight through. A worker on another crew had died of heatstroke a few weeks before that. I quit that day and told them why. Still enrages me.
Even if nothing addresses heat-related injury, I can’t imagine anything on the books in Texas will shield them from OSHA regs’ general duty clause. Fine ‘em out of business and hold them individually legally liable for any death/injury, I say. If you won’t protect your employees, you don’t get to be the boss.
I’m with Ibbicca on this, being baffled as to why the state is interfering on an issue of safety, why construction companies would lobby them to do so.
Productivity is improved by employees who are healthy and not dying. I don’t see the benefit to even a capitalist bastard. The only conclusion I can come to is the pure need to assert power.
Or just pure sadism. There’s a lot of that around these days.
Mike @#8: For many a control-freak, power is its own reward.