As Wildfire Season Approaches, It's Time to Protect Outdoor Workers from Smoke Exposure

CWA District 9 has submitted comments to the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) urging them to strengthen proposed emergency standards to protect outdoor workers from wildfire smoke exposure as California wildfire season approaches.

CWA D9 represents more than 10,000 workers employed as technicians at companies including AT&T, Frontier, and Verizon, many of whom are assigned work that includes performing job functions in an outdoor environment throughout California.  

In the comments, CWA D9 urges Cal/OSHA to remove any exemption for utility workers, increase worker training obligations for employers, and require fit-testing of respirators to provide workers enough protection to reduce exposures in areas of high fire risk.