NEWS: Congressman Greg Casar Ends 8+ Hour Thirst Strike on the U.S. House Steps
Every worker should have the right to a basic water break.
WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Greg Casar (D-Texas) was on thirst strike for nearly nine hours— not drinking water or taking breaks from the U.S Capitol steps— to draw attention to the need for a federal workplace heat standard, including protections for rest and water breaks.
“After no water and no rest for nearly nine hours on the Capitol steps, I feel more confident than ever that we can make positive change in this country for working people— including winning the right to basic water breaks. This was an action of respect and love for each other, for our state, and for our country. No governor, no corporate lobby group, no one can get in our way.”
Casar was joined by dozens of Texas workers, union leaders, and members of Congress throughout the day.
The event followed a letter released on Monday, when Casarled a group of 110+ members of Congress calling on the Biden Administration to implement an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) workplace heat standard as quickly as possible. The members urged the “fastest possible implementation… given the dire threat to the lives of workers exposed to extreme heat.”
OSHA currently has no rule requiring protection from extreme heat.
In 2010 at the age of 21, Casar led a thirst strike on the steps of Austin City Hall with Workers Defense Project to call for rest and water break protections. Austin passed rest and water break protections that year. Casar thenhelped pass local rest and water break protections in Dallas in a multi-year campaign that culminated in 2015.
Over a third of Texas construction workers report not receiving water breaks on the job. Construction workers were 35% more likely to report receiving a rest break in Austin thanks to the city’s rest break ordinance. Multiple workers— from postal workers to electrical line workers— have died working in the Texas sun during this year’s heat wave.
The event came just a few weeks prior to Texas House Bill 2127 becoming law, which will eliminate local protections against extreme heat, such as the Austin and Dallas ordinances that require water breaks for workers. While Texas state legislators are working to dismantle worker protections, some states such as California, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington have taken a proactive approach to protecting workers from extreme heat by implementing statewide heat rules.
A livestream of the event is available on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
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Congressman Greg Casar represents Texas’s 35th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, which runs down I-35 from East Austin to Hays County to the West Side of San Antonio. A labor organizer and son of Mexican immigrants, Casar serves as the Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus for the 118th Congress. He also serves on the Committee on Oversight and Accountability and the Committee on Agriculture.