SafeDE News

Personal protective equipment (PPE) is non-negotiable for workplace safety, but hot weather creates a challenging balance between protection and comfort. With new OSHA heat regulations on the horizon and advancing cooling technologies, there are more options than ever to keep workers safe and help you stay cool and focused on the job.

Every year, thousands of U.S. workers become sick from occupational heat exposure, with some cases proving fatal. Heat illness can develop rapidly when the body's cooling system can't keep up with high temperatures and humidity.

Heat illness is a serious workplace hazard that's becoming increasingly common. There were 36 work-related deaths due to environmental heat exposure in 2021, and about 2,300 people in the United States died in the summer of 2023, with the cause of death being excessive heat, the highest in 45 years of records.

The initial days of working in hot or warm environments pose the highest risk of fatalities due to the body's need to gradually adapt to the heat, a process known as heat acclimatization. This risk applies to both indoor and outdoor workers who lack acclimatization.