# Amendment of Municipal Code Title 6, Chapter 140 regarding heat illness prevention in outdoor places of employment

Clerk's short name: Heat-Related Illness Prevention in Outdoor Places of Employment Ordinance

- Record number: **SO2023-0004210**
- Type: Ordinance; category: Municipal Code Amendments
- Status: Council Consideration
- Sponsor: [Maria E. Hadden](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/ward/49) (49th Ward)
- Committee: [Committee on Workforce Development](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/committee/workforce-development)
- Submitted Date: Sep 14, 2023
- Introduction Date: Sep 14, 2023
- Official record: [Office of the City Clerk](https://chicityclerkelms.chicago.gov/Matter/?matterId=BC4E1D2D-1653-EE11-BE6E-001DD809716C)

## Impact report

> Written by AI from [the official document](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/files/clerk/matterattachmentspublic/f211b87a-bc62-4d98-970a-bcf3b70707e2.pdf). AI can make mistakes; the official document always wins.

This ordinance would require Chicago employers to give outdoor workers shade, water, cool-down breaks, heat safety training, and emergency help when the heat index is above 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

**Who it affects**

- **Outdoor workers, including City and Sister Agency employees**: They would get free water, access to shade, cool-down breaks, heat training in their preferred language, and a written heat safety plan.
- **Employers with outdoor workers**: They would have to provide shade and water, set up high-heat and emergency procedures, train staff, keep illness records for five years, and post notices of workers' rights.
- **Workers designated to monitor others**: They would receive annual training and watch up to 20 outdoor workers each for signs of heat-related illness.
- **New outdoor workers**: They would be observed by a designated worker during their first 14 days of work in hot months to make sure they adjust to the heat.
- **Unionized construction workers**: Construction workers covered by a bona fide collective bargaining agreement would not be covered by this ordinance.
- **Emergency workers**: Workers doing emergency operations and City Fire, Police, and Office of Emergency Management and Communications employees would not be covered.

**What changes**

- When the heat index is 90 degrees or higher, outdoor workers would get a mandatory 15-minute cool-down break in the shade every two hours.
- Employers would have to provide cool water at every shift, with water stations no more than 0.25 miles from where people work on large sites.
- Employers would have to adjust job quotas so workers can take cool-down rests, and these rests could not cut into meal breaks.
- Employers with three or more violations on three different days within 12 months could be found ineligible for City contracts or lose their license.
- Workers could file complaints through a system connected to the City's 311 service.

**Money**

- Employers who violate the rules would pay a fine of $500 to $1,000 per offense, with each day of a violation counted as a separate offense.
- Starting January 1, 2028, outdoor workers could sue employers for three times their lost wages from heat-related illness, plus medical costs, interest, court costs, and attorney's fees.
- Employers must provide water to outdoor workers at no cost.

**When**: January 1, 2027

## Lobbying and money

> Computed links; money near a vote is not evidence that it influenced the vote.

**Who lobbied on it**

- Chicagoland Chamber Of Commerce: SO2026-0024043 (SUPPORT); SO2023-0004210 (OPPOSE); (1 filing, Apr 1, 2026 to Jun 30, 2026; Carl Gutierrez; matched by record number)

**Alderpersons who received money from these interests**

| Member | Amount | From |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [James M. Gardiner](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/ward/45) | $2,000 | Chicagoland Chamber Of Commerce (company) |
| [Pat Dowell](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/ward/3) | $1,000 | Chicagoland Chamber Of Commerce (company) |
| [Stephanie D. Coleman](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/ward/16) | $1,000 | Chicagoland Chamber Of Commerce (company) |
| [Ronnie L. Mosley](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/ward/21) | $1,000 | Chicagoland Chamber Of Commerce (company) |
| [Samantha Nugent](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/ward/39) | $1,000 | Chicagoland Chamber Of Commerce (company) |
| [Debra L. Silverstein](https://www.chicagopolitics.org/ward/50) | $1,000 | Chicagoland Chamber Of Commerce (company) |

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Source: https://www.chicagopolitics.org/matter/BC4E1D2D-1653-EE11-BE6E-001DD809716C · Chicago Politics, an independent, nonpartisan tracker of the Chicago City Council. Guide for agents: https://www.chicagopolitics.org/llms.txt