Last week, Senator Kamala Harris introduced legislation to ensure the safety and health of workers who are exposed to dangerous heat conditions in the workplace. The bill, the Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act, is named in honor of Asunción Valdivia who died in 2004 after picking grapes for ten hours straight in 105-degree temperatures. The bill builds on legislation that Representative Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park), which she introduced as a member of the California Assembly, that made California the first state in the nation to require paid shade and water breaks for those who work outside. Currently, there is no similar federal standard. S.4781 was referred to the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee following its introduction.
