Workers Demand Protection from Extreme Heat – OFL Urges Government to Act

/EIN News/ -- TORONTO, May 29, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As another sweltering Ontario summer approaches, the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL), frontline workers, and Ontario NDP MPPs gathered at Queen’s Park to demand immediate passage of the Heat Stress Act, a Private Members’ Bill that would establish enforceable heat protection standards for workers.

The bill is tabled by MPP Peter Tabuns and co-sponsored by ONDP MPPs Jamie West, Lise Vaugeois, and Chandra Pasma.

“We’re here today to endorse the tabling of the Heat Stress Act because it does what this government won’t, it protects workers,” said OFL President Laura Walton. “This is about basic safety. No one should be forced to choose between their health and a paycheque.”

Launched in May 2024, the OFL’s Heat Is On campaign has highlighted the surge in heat-related illness and unsafe working conditions. Today, over 1,000 signed petitions from workers across the province were delivered to Queen’s Park demanding urgent action.

“We’re back at Queen’s Park because the government hasn’t done its job,” Walton said. “We’ve brought petitions. We’ve brought science. We’ve brought stories from frontline workers and still, they refuse to act. But workers aren’t backing down.”

Edie Mariconda, President of Toronto Civic Employees Union Local 416 emphasized the urgent need:

“Access to water and rest shouldn’t be a luxury. Our workers are lifting heavy bins in extreme heat for hours, often with no shade and no cooling. Paramedics face surging call volumes and wear heavy PPE with no time to recover. The risks are real, and without enforceable standards, they’re unprotected.”

“Working in extreme heat shouldn’t be a death sentence,” said Tabuns. “Climate change is already here, and workers across the province are feeling the impact. It’s time for the government to stop dragging its feet and put real protections in place.”

The Heat Stress Act would set enforceable standards and guarantee the right to safe working conditions during extreme heat.

“Extreme heat is here and it’s only getting worse,” Walton added. “If this government truly wants to ‘protect Ontario’, it needs to start by protecting the people who make it run.”

Media Contact:
Jenny Sellathurai
Director of Communications, Ontario Federation of Labour
jsellathurai@ofl.ca | 416-894-3456

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