TX Republicans will ban local rules requiring water breaks for construction workers

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

As Texas swelters, local rules requiring water breaks for construction workers will soon be nullified

In a week when parts of the state are getting triple-digit temperatures and weather officials urge Texans to stay cool and hydrated, Gov. Greg Abbott gave final approval to a law that will eliminate local rules mandating water breaks for construction workers.

House Bill 2127 was passed by the Texas Legislature during this year’s regular legislative session. Abbott signed it Tuesday. It will go into effect on Sept. 1.

Supporters of the law have said it will eliminate a patchwork of local ordinances across the state that bog down businesses. The law’s scope is broad but ordinances that establish minimum breaks in the workplace are one of the explicit targets. The law will nullify ordinances enacted by Austin in 2010 and Dallas in 2015 that established 10-minute breaks every four hours so that construction workers can drink water and protect themselves from the sun. It also prevents other cities from passing such rules in the future. San Antonio has been considering a similar ordinance.

[politicallefty]

The cruelty is the point. Greg Abbott is a legit awful person.

[gerritcole]

Imagine saying water breaks stop construction

[MaxQue]

We need a Cities Rights Movement.

[Benjamin Frank]

The Republican Party is a pro death cult.

[Suburbia]

The Republican Party is a pro death cult.

Tell that to the blue collar workers who support them

[TDAS04]

That sounds sadistic.

[Benjamin Frank]

The Republican Party is a pro death cult.

Tell that to the blue collar workers who support them

I mean, if the blue collar construction workers here want to have their health imperilled because they don't want 'government help' or something, ultimately that's their concern and doesn't impact me personally, but it seems pretty stupid.

And I do mean 'if' because it's entirely possible that Republican voting construction workers might break with the Republican Party over this. As I said, they'd have to be pretty stupid to go along with this.

You have given nothing but an assumption that blue collar workers like this sort of legislation.

[MaxQue]

The Republican Party is a pro death cult.

Tell that to the blue collar workers who support them

They've been brainwashed by client media whose owners want the tax cuts.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

The Republican Party is a pro death cult.

Tell that to the blue collar workers who support them

False consciousness was definitely one of the concepts that Marx was righter about, yes.

[progressive85]

That's just so nasty.  A lot of those construction workers are Republicans.  They deserve to be treated with respect and regular water breaks are not too much to ask from management.

[President Johnson]

The party of the working class, my friends.

[NerdyBohemian]

Dying of dehydration to own the libs.

[GregTheGreat657]

The fact that this law was passed in air conditioned buildings cannot go ignored

[OSR stands with Israel]

Stuff like this even make someone like me like unions more

[Xing]

Cartoon villains are more nuanced and redeemable than the Texas Republican Party and the worst Governor in the country.

[Yoda]

10 minutes every four hours was too much for republicans?!?! Years ago when I framed houses during the summer I was sipping water near constantly. My God what a cartoonish joke of a party.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

The bill broadly does away with many different local commercial regulations. It doesn't mention water breaks or construction specifically, that is just one thing that will be affected. 

There's a lot to be said for letting localities set their own rules on these kinds of things, especially where state regulations are lacking. On the other hand it does cost time and resources for businesses to have to comply with different rules depending on what place they are working in from one day or week to the next.

[Benjamin Frank]

Reasons why the Republicans would have specifically targeted this:
1.Trying to repair relations with business, especially small business as most construction companies are small businesses.

2.Laws/regulations are bad.

3.Contuing the Republican attack on Democratic cities.

4.Their likely perception that many/most construction workers are illegals.

[PSOL]

I doubt most construction workers with green cards actually vote people, that doesn't lie with polling data that shows that blue collar workers generally don't vote.

What this does help are local donors and suburban shareholders who do indeed vote.

[free my dawg]

Heil Abbott.

[Ferguson97]

The Republican Party is a pro death cult.

Tell that to the blue collar workers who support them

I'll tell them to their face that they're morons.

[Benjamin Frank]

The Republican Party is a pro death cult.

Tell that to the blue collar workers who support them

I'll tell them to their face that they're morons.

Just because suburbia claims it doesn't make it so.

[Vice President Christian Man]

They should strike and allow the people to see how damaging this policy is when their projects/infrastructure is suspended.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

The Republican Party is a pro death cult.

Tell that to the blue collar workers who support them

Democrats should openly embrace French-style labor policies (pre-Macron and even current policies are a huge step above America's) and hit harder on Republicans actively rolling them back, yes.