If you run a restaurant, café, bar, hotel, or tourism business in Ontario, your team can face heat stress, especially in hot kitchens, dish rooms, laundry areas, outdoor patios, or during summer heat waves. Heat stress can happen when the body can’t cool itself properly. It can lead to headaches, dizziness, exhaustion, fainting, and in severe cases, heat stroke. Workers are at higher risk when temperatures rise, humidity is high, or they work near equipment that gives off heat such as ovens, grills, fryers, and dishwashers.

As an employer, you must take reasonable steps to keep workers safe under Section 25(2)(h) of Ontario safety law - the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA). That includes protecting people from heat-related illness. The Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development recommends using guidelines from the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists, which are designed to prevent workers’ core body temperature from rising above 38°C (100.4°F). While you don’t need to be a safety expert, you do need a heat stress plan to protect your staff.

What employers need to do to prevent heat stress

You should implement a heat stress prevention program that includes:

• Training for workers and supervisors on recognizing heat-related hazards and symptoms.
• Ongoing monitoring of heat conditions, using tools such as the humidex or Environment Canada heat alerts.
• A clear sampling plan outlining when, where, and how heat conditions will be assessed.
• Preventive and control measures, such as adjusting work/rest schedules, providing shaded or cooled rest areas, and reducing physical workload in extreme heat.
• A hydration plan, such as encouraging workers to drink at least one cup of water every 20 minutes.
• First aid and emergency response procedures specific to heat stress, including steps for recognizing and responding to heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

By taking these steps, you will meet your legal responsibilities and help protect your team during hot weather, keeping your workplace safe, healthy, and running smoothly.

Need help getting started?

WSPS consultants can help you develop a heat stress prevention program. Contact us today to get started.

Safety resources

• Government of Ontario - Creating a heat stress plan – Learn more about what you should include in a heat stress control plan, based on the work environment.
• Visit the OHCOW Heat Stress Tool Kit, courtesy of the Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers (OHCOW) and the Centre for Research in Occupational Safety & Health (CROSH). This toolkit is designed to support, empower and protect workers while guiding workplaces for both indoor and outdoor use.
• Safety in 60 seconds: Heat stress and the signs and symptoms – Watch this short video to learn about heat stress and what to watch for.

The information in this article is accurate as of its publication date.