Under the proposed Biden-era standard, employers would be required to provide water and shaded rest areas once temperatures reach 80 degrees, implement mandatory 15‑minute rest breaks at least every two hours, and increase monitoring when temperatures exceed 90 degrees. Employers have criticized the proposal as overly expansive and burdensome, pointing in particular to requirements such as a 20% acclimatization period designed to protect new or returning employees who are not yet accustomed to working in extreme heat.

There is also a concern that labor groups may sue under the Administrative Procedure Act, potentially forcing OSHA to restart the rulemaking process if the final standard shifts too far from the detailed requirements first proposed.  

OSHA is currently working to balance industry requests for changes, broader administration priorities, and legal limits on how much the final rule can differ from the original proposal.

OSHA now finds itself navigating competing priorities: industry calls for a reset, a White House skeptical of regulation, and the legal requirement that any final rule be a logical outgrowth of what was originally proposed. How those factors come together is something we’ll have to wait and see.