When must shade be provided and what are appropriate sources of shade?

When temperatures exceed 80°F, shade structures must be erected if no other shade is readily available. Even if temperatures do not exceed 80°F, shade must still be available upon employee request, and it is helpful to have the shade erected if the weather is hot enough that the shade can help employees cool off.

Employers should monitor predicted weather temperatures in advance (on television, radio or the Internet) to know when the temperature is likely to exceed 80 degrees. Employers are expected to know if the temperature is in fact exceeding 80 degrees at the work site.

Shade may be provided by any natural or artificial means that do not expose employees to unsafe or unhealthy conditions. For example, buildings, canopies, lean-tos, or other partial or temporary structures that are either ventilated or open to air movement may provide shade. Trees can also provide shade that is superior to artificially provided shade and are accepted as compliant sources of shade if the following conditions are met:

• The canopy of the trees must be sufficiently dense to provide substantially complete blockage of direct sunlight, and
• The branches from the trees must not be so low to the ground that employees must crouch or cannot sit up straight without contacting vegetation.