The Workforce Development Committee of the Chicago City Council passed a proposed “Heat-Related Illness Prevention in Outdoor Places of Employment Ordinance” on September 25.

The proposed ordinance now goes to the Chicago City Council for a full vote.

The proposed ordinance applies to “employers with workers performing work in an outdoor environment where the Outdoor Heat Index exceeds 80 degrees Fahrenheit.” It would minutely regulate access to shade and water, mandatory cool-down periods, employee monitoring, and training and record-keeping requirements.

It would not, however, apply to all workers and employers. Unionized construction workers, firemen, policemen, emergency medical services providers, and utility workers are largely exempted from the mandate.

Employers that fail to comply with all the new mandates will be subject to a daily fine of $500-$1,000 and are subject to civil lawsuits for “damages equal to three times the amount of any lost wages due to heat-related illness, costs of incurred and ongoing medical expenses, and the interest on that amount calculated at the prevailing rate, together with costs and such reasonable attorney’s fees as the court allows.”

NFIB joined a business coalition led by the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce to oppose the measure. Besides the Chicagoland Chamber and NFIB, the group includes the Illinois Restaurant Association, the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, the Illinois Trucking Association, the Illinois Movers’ and Warehousemen’s Association, and the Illinois Railroad Association.