Workers in Arizona don't have protections they need from triple-digit temperatures

+ Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu --> Newsletters NPR Shop Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions The Best Music of 2025 Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Up First Here & Now NPR Politics Podcast Featured Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Planet Money Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions The Best Music of 2025 About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Workers in Arizona don't have protections they need from triple-digit temperatures Labor groups say Arizona isn't moving fast enough to establish new protections for people whose work exposes them to the state's sizzling high temperatures. National Workers in Arizona don't have protections they need from triple-digit temperatures April 24, 20266:12 PM ET Heard on All Things Considered From By Katherine Davis-Young Workers in Arizona don't have protections they need from triple-digit temperatures Listen &middot; 3:54 3:54 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5780983/nx-s1-9744453" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript Labor groups say Arizona isn't moving fast enough to establish new protections for people whose work exposes them to the state's sizzling high temperatures. Sponsor Message SCOTT DETROW, HOST: Heat is the top weather-related killer in the U.S. Seven different states have now adopted rules requiring employers to provide water breaks and other heat protections for workers, but regulations like that do not exist in Arizona, where triple-digit high temperatures can last months at a time. KJZZ's Katherine Davis-Young reports on efforts to change that.

+ KATHERINE DAVIS-YOUNG, BYLINE: Fifty-three-year-old Jesus Reyes has been a day laborer in Tucson for about 30 years, mostly landscaping. One afternoon in June 2021, the scorching heat really caught up with him. JESUS REYES: (Through interpreter) It started with a severe headache, a lot of vomiting and a lot of dizziness. DAVIS-YOUNG: He'd been working all day without much access to water or shade. By the time his wife took him to the hospital after work, he'd lost consciousness. REYES: (Through interpreter) The doctor told me that I had arrived just in time. DAVIS-YOUNG: It was heat stroke, a life-threatening condition that affects the heart, brain and other vital organs. Reyes needed two surgeries to save his life. Five years later, he still doesn't feel like he's fully recovered. REYES: (Through interpreter) I don't want to push my body too hard because I'm afraid - afraid that the same thing might happen to me again -∫ because it was a truly terrible experience. DAVIS-YOUNG: OSHA estimates every year, more than 20,000 workers suffer illnesses or injuries related to heat exposure on the job nationwide and estimates more than 500 die. Arizona has no specific workplace heat regulations, and as climate change drives up temperatures, outdoor worker deaths in Arizona appear to be increasing at a faster rate than in neighboring California, where heat rules have been in place since 2005. That's according to a recent study in the journal Health Affairs. UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: From the fields to the streets, we demand protections from this heat. DAVIS-YOUNG: Labor groups have held rallies at the state capitol, calling for Arizona to establish an enforceable heat standard under which employers could be cited if they're not taking precautions. They say workers in some of the hottest roles - day laborers, farmworkers - are often immigrants with little job security who are afraid to complain, so they depend on authorities to keep workplaces safe. But that idea worries some Arizona employers. DANIEL HARRIS: It really could risk being inflexible to allow for the necessities for an agricultural operation. DAVIS-YOUNG: Daniel Harris is with the Arizona Farm Bureau. Crops have to be picked when they're ready. Harris says safety is important, but... HARRIS: Keeping it relegated to guidelines gets us there without overregulating. DAVIS-YOUNG: Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs last year put together a task force asking leaders in industries like agriculture, construction and firefighting for their recommendations. The whole group agreed workers need access to water and training to spot heat illness, but they didn't all agree on enforcement. And this year's state officials did not move forward to establish the kind of enforceable regulations labor groups want. Dennis Kavanaugh, who chairs the state commission that enforces worker protection laws, said that could still happen. DENNIS KAVANAUGH: Today's not a once and done. This is the beginning of our process as commissioners to deal with this issue. DAVIS-YOUNG: Labor leaders say the state isn't moving fast enough. The last two years were Phoenix's hottest on record. Now Arizona workers are headed into another summer without the protections they've been calling for. For Jesus Reyes, that poses a dilemma. REYES: (Through interpreter) We have to work to survive. DAVIS-YOUNG: But in Arizona's heat, he worries whether he'll survive his work. For NPR News, I'm Katherine Davis-Young in Phoenix. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{1166:function(e,n,c){e.exports=c(321)},321:function(e,n,c){"use strict";c.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([c.e(1),c.e(2),c.e(3),c.e(4),c.e(82)]).then(function(e){c(3),c(1139),c(116),c(94),c(52),c(493),c(239),c(101),c(103),c(1140),c(144),c(1141),c(238),c(48),c(1142)}.bind(null,c)).catch(c.oe)}},[[1166,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();