Sweltering summer heat might have been more bearable for outdoor workers in Miami-Dade County under a proposal that suggested mandated breaks in the shade on the hottest days – but Florida said no.
The county’s proposal to establish heat rules for workers has been preempted by a new law: Florida has joined Texas in banning such local rules for outdoor workers. Meanwhile, California, Colorado, Minnesota, Oregon and Washington have passed laws giving more protections to construction workers who work in extreme heat.
Florida’s new law has frustrated and angered some experts and advocates for construction workers and farmworkers. As summers get hotter over the years, outdoor workers will need more protections, not fewer, said Luigi Guadarrama, political director of Sierra Club Florida said.
The law will primarily affect low-income workers of color, Guadarrama said: “Currently, the state legislature has no interest in protecting workers."
Other advocates also say more protections for outdoor workers are needed.
Do you want your workforce to leave your state? Because that’s how you get your workforce to leave your state. This is insane.
I still remember Florida having to scramble to get their migrant workers back after shitting on them repeatedly. Now that they have them back they can’t resist but to blast those poor workers with more of their dehumanizing legislation
almost like the republiQan party is made up of selfish greedy assholes.
If only. They said the people affected the most will be poor people. Poor people cannot just up and leave.