When working in hot weather what do you think is adequate supply of water to have with you for your entire shift?

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Integrity

Binge Poster
It is a crystal clear responsibility for employers to ensure that employees have an adequate supply of water suitable for drinking with requirements that it be fresh, pure, suitably cool, and provided to employees free of charge. The water shall be located as close as practicable to the areas where employees are working. Where drinking water is not plumbed or otherwise continuously supplied, it shall be provided in sufficient quantity at the beginning of the work shift to provide one quart per employee per hour for drinking for the entire shift.

Your personal understanding of what amount of water you should have available to you and the failure or success of UPS to meet these requirements and their fulfilling their responsibilities to you and to all UPS employees is the sole scope and topic of this thread.

Based upon a 10.5 hours an adequate supply of water meeting the above requirements is 2.625 gallons. The employer shall dispense drinking water using one of the following means: from a fountain, a covered container with single-use drinking cups stored in a sanitary receptacle, or single-use bottles. The employer shall prohibit the use of shared drinking cups, dippers, and water bottles.

A 3 gallon jug, at least 20 bottles of .5 liter water bottles in a cooler with ice, or 42 8oz water bottles in a cooler with Ice will all meet the requirements.

The employer is responsible to ensure that each delivery driver has at least this much with them when working in hot conditions.

Part timers working in the sweatshops that most UPS facilities are should be supplied about half of the above in any of the acceptable means listed by OSHA.

This is a UPS responsibility, this is not an employee responsibility.

IMO The sole responsibility of the UPS employee is follow all UPS Safety Training exactly as stated but specifically to this topic, to follow all UPS Safety training regarding Heat related injuries/illness exactly as trained and to hold the UPS management in your building to their responsibility as to this training and OSHA requirements by seeing that they pay for and provide what they are required.

A warning:

Unfortunately I do believe if you do this you will be targeted by both UPS management and management sympathetic hourly workers union and non union.

I am available for private conversation regarding this topic as well just use the conversation feature of this site

Please :
Due to the serious nature of this topic, busting chops, joking and belittling individuals about this topic are not appropriate, nor welcome, please stay out of this discussion if that is all you want to add.
 

DriverNerd

Well-Known Member
On really hot days I drink about 1.5-2 gallons. That's plenty for me. I bring two coolers to work - one with food and drinks and one with just liquids. I don't like gallon jugs because then I can't use the cupholders. I use Gatorade bottles (filled with water) as my water supply. I fill them up every night and put them in the fridge.

Telling UPS I need two gallons of water just means that I will have two gallons of warm water sitting in the back.
 

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Nah
If you drink 2.6 gallons of water everyday you will get sick. There is such thing as OVER-HYDRATION.
The kind of person who over hydrates on 2.6 gallons probably isn't working a physical job, let alone spending half their day in the 140°+ cargo area of a UPS truck. Hydration needs vary by person, and yes, occupation.
 

oldngray

nowhere special
The kind of person who over hydrates on 2.6 gallons probably isn't working a physical job, let alone spending half their day in the 140°+ cargo area of a UPS truck. Hydration needs vary by person, and yes, occupation.
it is possible but takes a LOT of water to over hydrate
 

Integrity

Binge Poster
If you drink 2.6 gallons of water everyday you will get sick. There is such thing as OVER-HYDRATION.
His does this statement reconcile with the Company requirements stated in the original post?

What are your thoughts on the requirements stated in the OP?
 

TheBrownNote

Good thing I wore my brown pants
@Integrity please stop with your high and mighty attitude.

Ruth be old unless specifically passed as law, any thing Osha states will fall under the recent EPA vs West Virgina court case where the epa was fou d to regulate things that were not passed in law. So NO, UPS isnt actually responsible according to osha. Osha has no authority to make regulations that have not specifically been passed as a law.

How do you reconcile to the fact the UPS has no contractual obligation, and that an over reaching government entity doesnt actually have the authority to do anything?
 
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Steamer

Well-Known Member
Sodium, calcium, potassium, chloride, phosphate, and magnesium.

You need hydration but also electrolytes. You could basically sweat a lot your electrolytes out and get sick by hydrating without them when you drink a lot of plain water diluting what is left.. Just like a battery electrolytes send your bodies electrical signals through your body with them.

 

Integrity

Binge Poster
@Integrity please stop with your high and mighty attitude.

Ruth be old unless specifically passed as law, any thing Osha states will fall under the recent EPA vs West Virgina court case where the epa was fou d to regulate things that were not passed in law. So NO, UPS isnt actually responsible according to osha. Osha has no authority to make regulations that have not specifically been passed as a law.

How do you reconcile to the fact the UPS has no contractual obligation, and that an over reaching government entity doesnt actually have the authority to do anything?
Do you have any experience dealing with OSHA in efforts to exercise your employee rights at UPS?
 

oldngray

nowhere special
Sodium, calcium, potassium, chloride, phosphate, and magnesium.

You need hydration but also electrolytes. You could basically sweat a lot your electrolytes out and get sick by hydrating without them when you drink a lot of plain water diluting what is left.. Just like a battery electrolytes send your bodies electrical signals through your body with them.

True but too many of the sports drinks are little more than sugar water
 

Integrity

Binge Poster
Sodium, calcium, potassium, chloride, phosphate, and magnesium.

You need hydration but also electrolytes. You could basically sweat a lot your electrolytes out and get sick by hydrating without them when you drink a lot of plain water diluting what is left.. Just like a battery electrolytes send your bodies electrical signals through your body with them.

I agree.

When hot working conditions exist, in addition to the required water supply I do believe that a case can be made for UPS to be required to pay for and provide a small quantity of beverages with electrolytes based upon the known strenuous nature of package handling and delivery jobs.
 

TheBrownNote

Good thing I wore my brown pants
Should UPS also be required to provide small hydrating healthy snacks, like fresh fruit, to help alleviate nausea from proper water consumption? Is hydrated healthy snacks considered properly provided hydration?
 

Integrity

Binge Poster
Should UPS also be required to provide small hydrating healthy snacks, like fresh fruit, to help alleviate nausea from proper water consumption? Is hydrated healthy snacks considered properly provided hydration?
These are 2 good questions for OSHA. You can call your area compliance office and in my experience they most likely will answer these types of questions over the phone.


What are your thoughts on the requirements stated in the OP?
 

nWo

Well-Known Member
Sean O says UPS should provide water for all drivers plus electrolyte enhanced water during heat advisories. Plus fans.
 
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