(2) Employees are responsible for monitoring their own personal factors for heat-related illness including consumption of water or other acceptable beverages to ensure hydration, and taking preventative cool-down rest periods when they feel the need to do so to prevent from overheating.

Employers of employees exposed at or above temperatures listed in Table 1 of WAC 296-307-09730 must:

(1) Provide and maintain one or more areas with shade at all times while employees are present that are either open to the air or provided with ventilation or cooling, and not adjoining a radiant heat source such as machinery or a concrete structure. The shade must be located as close as practicable to the areas where employees are working.

(2) Ensure the amount of shade present is large enough to accommodate the number of employees on a meal or rest period, so they can sit in a normal posture fully in the shade.

(3) In lieu of shade, employers may use other means to reduce body temperature if they can demonstrate such means are equally or more effective than shade. Some alternatives to shade may include the provision of misting stations, cooling vests, or air-conditioned areas.

(1) Keeping workers hydrated in a hot outdoor environment requires that more water be provided than at other times of the year. Federal OSHA and research indicate that employers should be prepared to supply at least one quart of drinking water per employee per hour. When employee exposure is at or above an applicable temperature listed in WAC ((296-307-09710(2)))296-307-09730 Table 1:

(a) Employers must ensure that a sufficient quantity of suitably cool drinking water is readily accessible to employees at all times; and

(b) Employers must ensure that all employees have the opportunity to drink at least one quart of drinking water per hour.

(2) Employers are not required to supply the entire quantity of drinking water needed to be supplied for all employees on a full shift at the beginning of the shift. Employers may begin the shift with smaller quantities of drinking water if effective procedures are established for replenishment during the shift.

Employers must closely observe employees for signs and symptoms of heat-related illness by implementing one or more of the close observation options under WAC 296-307-09747(2).

(1) For 14 days when employees:

(a) Are newly assigned to working at or above the applicable temperatures listed in Table 1 of WAC 296-307-09730;

(b) Return to work at the applicable temperatures listed in Table 1 of WAC 296-307-09730 after an absence of seven days or more;

(2) During a heat wave. For purposes of this section only, "heat wave" means any day in which the predicted high temperature for the day will be at least the temperatures listed in Table 1 of WAC 296-307-09730 and at least 10 degrees Fahrenheit higher than the average high daily temperature in the preceding five days.

The employer must implement the following high heat procedures when the temperature is at or above 90 degrees Fahrenheit, unless engineering or administrative controls (such as air-conditioning or scheduling work at cooler times of the day) are used to lower employees' exposure below 90 degrees Fahrenheit.

(1) Ensure that employees take at a minimum the mandatory cool-down rest periods in Table 2. The cool-down rest period must be provided in the shade or using other equally or more effective means to reduce body temperature. The mandatory cool-down rest period may be provided concurrently with any meal or rest period required under WAC 296-131-020 and must be paid unless taken during a meal period that is not otherwise required to be compensated. Mandatory cool-down rest periods in Table 2 are not required during emergency response operations where rescue, evacuation, utilities, communications, transportation, law enforcement, and medical operations are directly aiding firefighting, protecting public health and safety, or actively protecting, restoring or maintaining the safe and reliable operation of critical infrastructure at risk.

Table 2

(2) Closely observe employees for signs and symptoms of heat-related illness by implementing one or more of the following:

(a) Regular communication with employees working alone, such as by radio or cellular phone;

(b) A mandatory buddy system; or

(c) Other effective means of observation.

(1) Employers must ensure that effective communication by voice, observation, or electronic means is maintained so that employees at the work site and their supervisor can contact each other to report signs and symptoms of heat-related illness and get medical attention when necessary. An electronic device, such as a cellular phone or text messaging device, may be used for this purpose only if reception in the area is reliable.

(2) Employees showing signs or demonstrating symptoms of heat-related illness must be relieved from duty and provided with a sufficient means to reduce body temperature.

(((2)))(3) Employees showing signs or demonstrating symptoms of heat-related illness must be monitored to determine whether medical attention is necessary.

(1) All ((training must be provided to)) employees and supervisors((,))must be trained as required by this section prior to outdoor work where occupational exposure to heat might occur and at least annually after the initial training. Training must be provided in a language and manner the employee or supervisor understands((, prior to outdoor work which exceeds a temperature listed in WAC 296-307-09710(2) Table 1, and at least annually thereafter)).

(((1)))(2) Employee training. Effective training on the following topics must be provided to all employees who may be exposed to outdoor heat ((at or above the temperatures listed in WAC 296-307-09710(2) Table 1)):

(a) The environmental factors and other work conditions (i.e., workload, work duration, personal protective equipment, clothing) that contribute to the risk of heat-related illness;

(b) General awareness of personal factors that may increase susceptibility to heat-related illness including, but not limited to, an individual's age, physical fitness, degree of acclimatization, medical conditions, drinking water consumption, alcohol use, ((caffeine use, nicotine use))previous heat-related illness, pregnancy, and use of medications that affect the body's responses to heat. This information is for the employee's personal use;

(c) The importance of removing heat-retaining personal protective equipment such as nonbreathable chemical resistant clothing during all breaks;

(d) The importance of frequent consumption of small quantities of drinking water or other acceptable beverages;

(e) The importance of acclimatization((;

(f)))requirements under WAC 296-307-09745, the concept of acclimatization, and the importance of the following considerations:

(i) The different types of heat-related illness, the common signs and symptoms of heat-related illness; ((and

(g)))(j) The importance of immediately reporting signs or symptoms of heat-related illness in either themselves or in co-workers to the person in charge and the procedures the employee must follow including appropriate first aid and emergency response procedures((.

(2))); and

(3) Supervisor training. Prior to supervising employees working in outdoor environments with heat exposure at or above the temperature levels listed in WAC ((296-307-09710(2)))296-307-09730(2) Table 1, supervisors must have training on the following topics:

(a) The information required to be provided to employees listed in subsection (1) of this section;

(b) The procedures the supervisor must follow to implement the applicable provisions of WAC 296-307-097 through 296-307-09760;

(c) The importance of considering the use of engineering or administrative controls such as air-conditioning and scheduling work during the cooler hours of the day in order to reduce employees' exposure to heat;

(d) The procedures the supervisor must follow if an employee exhibits signs or symptoms consistent with possible heat-related illness, including appropriate first aid and emergency response procedures; and

(((d)))(e) Procedures for moving or transporting an employee(s) to a place where the employee(s) can be reached by an emergency medical service provider, if necessary.