USC maintenance employees react to record-breaking temperatures

The Southern California triple-digit heat advisory has been extended to Thursday. USC maintenance workers are taking extra precautions to stay safe as they perform their jobs around campus.

Air conditioning technician Tedd Stasik, who has worked at USC for 15 years, said it feels around 150 degrees Fahrenheit when he is working on equipment on rooftops.

“It has been brutally hot,” Stasik said. “The sun is beating down…it feels like being in a fishbowl on some of the roofs.”

When the heat is unbearable, Stasik is told to put off going atop school buildings until it cools down.

California Heat Illness Prevention standard requires employers to provide adequate training and planning to prevent heat illness or, even worse, death. Between 1992 and 2017, 815 workers died from heat stress and more than 70,000 were injured. The California Heat Illness Prevention standard emphasizes the importance of three essential needs: water, shade and rest.

“Keeping our employees safe during the heat is a top priority. We take a number of steps for our team members who work outside.” said Eric Johnson, USC Facilities, Operations and Maintenance executive director, in a statement to Annenberg Media. “They do the more labor-intensive work earlier in the morning before the sun is out or at its peak.”

Maintenance workers are also provided with hats and other gear to protect them from the sun, including five-gallon water jugs and ice makers in break areas, Johnson said.

Ana Pintor, who has worked at USC for 30 years as a janitor in housing, said she is grateful that the university puts their wellness first.

“If we feel sick, we can drink water or go inside to cool off,” Pintor said. “They [USC] give us the ‘privilege’ to sit down if we feel overwhelmed.”

As the heat wave runs its course through Thursday, it is recommended that all employees and students follow the instructions sent by Chief Health Officer Dr. Van Orman in an email to the university community.