Miami-Dade’s groundbreaking heat protection ordinance will likely stall, but shouldn’t die | Opinion

!Que Calor! Who cares?

That should not be the message Miami-Dade commissioners send Tuesday to the legions of outdoor workers in the county who toil under a supercharged hot sun.

Unfortunately, indications are that the Miami-Dade Commission will not give final approval to a proposal that would put legally mandated measures to protect agriculture and construction workers on the books by guaranteeing workers water and shaded breaks on hot days. The votes are not there, it seems.

Pushback from the powerful industries affected and a proposed ordinance that’s not fully cooked have collided. Given the record-breaking heat that seared Miami-Dade during the summer — July of this year was the hottest month in Miami ever recorded — everyone needs to get it right, and quickly. The weather has cooled, but workers should not labor through another summer without mandated relief. It is not overly dramatic to say that it’s a life-or-death issue.

We had hoped commissioners would side with the workers, but it looks like the !Que Calor! — “It’s so hot!” — campaign organized by WeCount, a group representing outdoor workers and lobbying for the heat standard for two years, does not have the votes — yet.

When introduced in July, the ordinance was considered one that set a high standard for ensuring the safety of outdoor workers.

Things have changed since the five Miami-Dade commissioners on the Community Health Committee voted 4-1 in favor of the highly popular heat protection bill, setting it up for a final vote Tuesday.

If passed in its current form, the bill, spearheaded by Commissioner Kionne McGhee, would require construction and agriculture companies with five or more employees to guarantee 10-minute breaks in the shade every two hours when the heat index hits 90 degrees.

It would also require employers to train workers to recognize the signs of heat illness, administer first-aid and call for help in an emergency.

And companies that repeatedly fail to follow the standards could face fines up to $3,000 per violation per day.

But McGhee warned that the bill would change in response to pressure from lobbyists in the construction and agriculture industries who oppose the measure. No surprise there.

“Everyone wants to do this, but we need to do a feasibility study, and both sides, workers and the industries, need to sit down and negotiate how these measures would work,” Commissioner Raquel Regalado, who supports the measure with fixes, told the Editorial Board.

The bill leaves too many unanswered questions, said Regalado, who believes more data is needed to comprehend the impact the measure will have on the industries.

Fair enough, but it’s a shame that such studies weren’t the first thing to happen. Now, all we can see is delay.

One of the main sticking points is who would be responsible for paying fines. A construction company, for instance, might hire contractors who hire subcontractors who then hire individual workers to do a job.

If one of those laborers doesn’t have access to water on a hot day, who pays the fine? Good question. The answer still has to be hammered out, according to McGhee. It’s disappointing that these unknowns have not already been addressed.

“What I heard at this moment is that all sides — all sides — need a little more time to craft out this piece of legislation,” McGhee told the Herald. McGhee said all along he would leave it up to industry and labor groups to negotiate a deal before the final vote.

All along, lobbyists for a conglomerate of construction and agriculture industry groups have asked commissioners to delay or reject the measure. They argued that the heat standard bill is unnecessary because the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) already regulates workplace safety.

“This ordinance would create a Miami-Dade County version of OSHA,” said Grant Archer, director of government affairs for the Associated Builders and Contractors Florida East Coast chapter, told the Herald. “This ordinance is duplicative. OSHA already regulates the construction and agriculture industry regarding water, rest and shade.” In fact, OSHA only offers guidelines to employers, not rules and enforcement is no-existent.

But OSHA rules are not enough anymore. Heat in South Florida during the summer months is not what it used to be. Stronger measures are needed to protect workers. Their lives are at stake in this high heat.

Let’s’ hope the commission can offer guidance to negotiate a fair and viable ordinance with the goal of protecting workers from the heat.

Yes, we’re the Sunshine State, but not always in a good way.