Nevada regulation R131-24AP, adopted November 15, 2024 and enforced by Nevada OSHA since April 29, 2025, requires employers with more than 10 employees to complete a one-time written job hazard analysis for job classifications where most workers are exposed to heat for more than 30 minutes of any 60-minute period. Where that exposure exists, employers need a written plan covering water, rest breaks, cooling, training, monitoring, and emergency response, plus a designated person to monitor conditions. Heat-related injuries to employees are generally handled through workers' compensation, while OSHA penalties are not insurable.
The Short Version
Nevada has a heat illness rule, and Nevada OSHA has enforced it since April 29, 2025. If you have more than 10 employees and your crews work in the heat, you need a written job hazard analysis and a heat illness plan. Summer is over for this year, which makes now the right time to get the paperwork done before the 2027 season.
Who It Covers
The regulation, R131-24AP, was adopted on November 15, 2024. Its main written requirements apply to:
- Employers with more than 10 employees in Nevada
- Job classifications where the majority of employees are exposed to heat for more than 30 minutes of any 60-minute period
For Las Vegas valley contractors, that describes most outdoor trades from May through September: roofing, concrete, framing, landscaping, and site work. It can also describe indoor work in hot spaces without working air conditioning, like attics and buildings that are not yet closed in.
What You Need on Paper
1. A one-time job hazard analysis
A written assessment of the conditions that can cause heat illness for each covered job classification. Nevada OSHA's guidance points to factors like air temperature, humidity, radiant heat from the sun and equipment, conductive heat from surfaces, air movement, how hard the work is and for how long, and the clothing and protective equipment workers wear. Nevada OSHA does not require a specific form, but the content has to be there.
2. A written heat illness plan
Where the analysis shows exposure, your written safety program needs to address:
- Access to potable water
- Rest breaks
- Cooling measures, such as shade or cooling areas
- Monitoring of working conditions
- Training so employees can recognize heat illness and know the procedures to reduce the risk
- Emergency response when someone shows signs of heat illness
3. A designated person
Someone on each crew must be responsible for monitoring conditions and handling an emergency, including contacting emergency services and giving clear directions to the job site.
Nevada OSHA's guidance also recommends helping new workers acclimatize gradually, generally over about seven to fourteen days.
How Inspections Work
Nevada OSHA's guidance describes heat priority days when the temperature reaches or exceeds 90 degrees Fahrenheit. In southern Nevada, that covers a large share of the construction year. Expect an inspector to ask for the hazard analysis, the written plan, training records, and how water, shade, and breaks actually work on site.
Where Insurance Fits
- Workers' compensation generally responds when an employee suffers heat exhaustion or heat stroke on the job. Those claims count in your loss history and can raise your experience modification over time.
- Fines and penalties are not insurable. No workers' comp or liability policy pays an OSHA citation.
- General contractors are paying attention. Many large Las Vegas projects require subcontractors to follow a site heat plan and may ask for yours during prequalification.
A documented heat program will not lower your premium on its own, but fewer claims will. And when you shop your workers' comp, carriers do look at the safety programs you can show them.
A Checklist Before Next Summer
- Count your employees. If you have more than 10, the written requirements apply.
- List each job classification and whether most workers in it spend more than 30 of every 60 minutes exposed to heat.
- Write the job hazard analysis for those classifications.
- Write or update your heat illness plan: water, rest, cooling, monitoring, training, emergency response.
- Name a designated person for each crew.
- Train your crews before May, and keep sign-in records.
- Review your workers' comp policy and loss history with your broker.
Construction Pros writes workers' comp for Nevada contractors. Get a free workers' comp quote, or read more about Las Vegas workers' compensation and Nevada contractor insurance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Nevada's heat illness rule apply to small contractors?
The job hazard analysis and written plan requirements apply to employers with more than 10 employees. Smaller contractors are not required to do the written analysis, but heat illness is still a recognized hazard on Nevada job sites, general contractors often require subs to follow their heat plans, and an injured employee's claim still runs through your workers' comp.
What triggers the job hazard analysis?
A job classification where the majority of employees are exposed to heat illness hazards for more than 30 minutes of any 60-minute period. Most outdoor construction trades in the Las Vegas valley meet that during summer, and so can indoor work in hot, unconditioned spaces like attics and buildings under construction.
When does Nevada OSHA focus on heat inspections?
Nevada OSHA's guidance describes heat priority days when the temperature reaches or exceeds 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Southern Nevada passes that mark for much of the year, so plan on scrutiny from late spring into fall.
Does workers' comp cover heat stroke and heat exhaustion?
Generally, yes. Heat illness that arises out of and in the course of employment is typically handled as a workers' compensation claim, like any other work injury. Claims affect your loss history and, over time, your experience modification and premium.
Will insurance pay an OSHA citation for a missing heat plan?
No. Fines and penalties are generally not covered by workers' comp, general liability, or other contractor policies. The protection is having the plan, the training, and the records in place before an inspector asks.