DESERT SUN (Palm Springs, California)

June 15, 2009

Keeping workers cool in desert heat

Emergency revisions to mandates may be adopted this week

JAKE HENSHAW, Desert Sun Sacramento Bureau

SACRAMENTO — After nearly four years of experience, state officials have decided that it's time to upgrade rules intended to protect agricultural workers on hot days.

The proposed changes, which could be adopted as emergency revisions by Thursday, would establish more specific standards for drinking water, shade, training and supervision.

The timing of the changes — just as the summer season begins — has caused some grumbling in the farm community but at least one new provision was sought by growers — recognizing trees and vines as shade.

‘‘Those changes over time could be beneficial, but it would be ideal to have a little more time to get our people ready to understand them,'' said Bryan Little, director of labor affairs for the California Farm Bureau, who stressed that he hasn't yet studied the proposed changes closely.

To the United Farm Workers, however, any changes matter little because of what they consider inadequate penalties and their inadequate enforcement.

‘‘Those regulations would be ineffective if there are no serious consequences for these actions,'' said UFW spokeswoman Maria Machuca.

She said the UFW wants to enact criminal penalties for heat illness violations that lead to death and to give workers an alternative to the secret ballot to organize a union as a way to gain more power to look out for themselves.

‘‘We want to give power back to the farm workers,'' she said.

Len Welsh, chief of the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health, which is charged with worker protection, said his agency can and has referred a couple of cases to district attorneys for possible criminal prosecutions and one has filed charges.

He said farm workers can file complaints about violations of heat regulations, which are ‘‘top priority'' for inspectors who try to check them on the day received.

Welsh said the top civil penalty for a violation is a $25,000 fine, but the more typical ones run between $10,000 and $15,000. Criminal penalties can run into the millions of dollars.

‘‘In some cases the penalties do get reduced,'' he said, for various reasons, including mistakes by inspectors and the unwillingness of some workers to testify when citations are challenged.

At issue are rules adopted as emergency regulations in 2005 and permanently in 2006 in response to heat-related deaths of outdoor workers.

There were 12 deaths in 2005, seven in 2006, one in 2007 and five in 2008, according to Cal-OSHA.

Then in a two-week hot period this year, May 11-22, inspectors ordered eight employers to shut down because of violations, more than double the number ordered to cease operations in all of 2008.

Five of the offenders were in the Coachella Valley, including Young's Nursery in Thermal, which has since come into compliance with the shade standard that was violated and is back in operation.

Young's manager, Robin Lutez, declined to comment on the violation because it's still an open case, but she said her company has no objection to the current regulations.

‘‘They seem very common sense,'' said Lutez, characterizing her firm's violation as an ‘‘oversight on distance.''

Welsh said regulators decided that more safeguards are needed because of continuing grower questions and violations, especially the cases in May.

‘‘One thing we can do to get more compliance is to make the regulations more clear,'' Welsh said.

The proposed changes largely will clarify specifics of the rules that the state already has advised farmers are being enforced, said Dean Fryer, spokesman for the Department of Industrial Relations.

The changes for the first time will set temperature levels for certain required shade standards, give more direction on drinking water and enhance the role of training and supervision.

The proposed emergency amendments could take effect as soon as Thursday. Then they could be adopted as permanent rules later this year.