In Scorching Texas, a New Law Puts Workers at Risk
With temperatures reaching 115 degrees, this was the worst possible time for the state to strike down requirements that employers offer shade and water breaks.
Texas summers are infamously hot and humid.
Photographer: Mark Felix/Bloomberg
You’d think in the year A.D. 2023, we would all agree that a little bit of shade and water is a basic human right when it’s 115 degrees outside. Texas seems to think otherwise.
Even as the state suffered through record June heat that shows no sign of relenting, Texas Governor Greg Abbott this week signed a law rescinding a requirement that employers offer outdoor workers breaks for water and shade. The measure overrides long-standing laws in Austin and Dallas that provide outdoor workers breaks every four hours.