by Mia Maldonado, Oregon Capital Chronicle
September 8, 2026
Complaints to Oregon’s workplace safety and health agency have reached an all-time high since it introduced rules protecting employees from extreme heat and wildfire smoke four years ago.
The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division, or Oregon OSHA, received at least 44 complaints from employees across different industries between June 1 to Aug. 18, according to documents the Capital Chronicle obtained through a records request.
That’s about 10 more than in 2023, when the agency received its second highest number of wildfire and smoke complaints. In 2024, it received nine. In 2025, it received two.
The rise in complaints coincides with Oregon’s record-breaking wildfire season that has scorched 2.5 million acres across the state.
The agency received 32 complaints during the first week of August, following several weeks of massive lightning-caused wildfires in July such as the Grasshopper Fire near Mount Hood, the Second Flat Fire outside Burns and the Coleman Creek Fire southwest of Warms Springs Reservoir.
Oregon OSHA adopted rules in 2022 to protect employees from heat and wildfire smoke
Since 2022, Oregon OSHA has required most employers to offer protections to employees working in extreme heat and wildfire smoke.
The state’s heat rules require employers to provide free drinking water and shaded areas to employees working in weather above 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and breaks when employees are working in above 90 degrees.
The wildfire smoke rules are based on the Air Quality Index, which measures the level of air pollution.
When the Air Quality Index is between 101 to 276, a range that’s considered unhealthy for sensitive groups to very unhealthy for everyone, employers must offer employees respirators that meet national standards, such as N95 masks.
When the AQI is between 277 and 848, employers must require employees to wear nationally-approved respirators.
When the AQI reaches 849 or higher, employers must require employees to wear respirators and implement a full respiratory protection program, which includes requirements such as medical evaluations and fit testing for employees using tight-fitting respirators.
Many employees, whose names were not revealed in the public records, alleged their employer required them to work outside in unhealthy levels of air pollution from wildfire smoke without masks, inside without proper building ventilation or both. Many also complained that they did not receive training on how to prevent heat illness or how to keep themselves safe from wildfire smoke at work.
After evaluating a complaint, Oregon OSHA can order a workplace inspection, contact the employer for more information or take no further action if the agency determines the complaint doesn’t fall within its jurisdiction or that it doesn’t involve workplace safety or health, agency spokesperson Aaron Corvin said.
Citations are only issued if a compliance officer identifies a violation under the Oregon Safe Employment Act, he said.
Nearly a quarter of complaints received no action
The majority of complaints came from the service and retail industry, followed by the outdoor recreation, government services and utility, manufacturing and construction and policing and security industries. Other complaints came from workers in the data center, civic engagement and farming industries. https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/jDkFr/1/(function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(message,function(e){if(e.data[datawrapper-height]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(iframe);for(var n in e.data[datawrapper-height])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[datawrapper-height][n]+px;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})();
Half of the records didn’t list an employer or address. Of the half that did, the greatest share — six — were from workers in Clackamas County. The rest came from Crook, Deschutes, Harney, Linn, Union, Washington and Yamhill counties.
More than half of the complaints made this summer resulted in the agency reaching out to employers for further information.
The Girl Scouts of Oregon and Southwest Washington was one employer that OSHA reached out to following a complaint alleging it hosted an outdoor event in Linn County where employees and volunteers were exposed to an AQI between 150 to 200.
“Following its review, Oregon OSHA judged (Girl Scouts of Oregon and Southwest Washington’s) response adequate, and no further action was required,” spokesperson Kyle Mallory said in an email. “Girl Scouts of Oregon and Southwest Washington takes the health and safety of Girl Scouts, volunteers and staff seriously, and provides training, clear protocols and support regarding a variety of safety standards, including wildfire smoke and air quality.”
Westates Flagman, a flagging control company based in Springfield, argued a complaint alleging employees don’t receive heat illness training or breaks doesn’t accurately reflect the company’s workplace practices.
“We take employee safety seriously and have established heat illness and wildfire smoke safety programs in place,” General Manager Rebecca Rusco said. “We provide employees with appropriate safety equipment and supplies, including access to drinking water and required protective equipment, and provide training and information regarding heat-related illness and wildfire smoke exposure.”
Nine complaints resulted in inspections, all of which were listed as still in process.
At least 10 employers received no action.
Employees can file a workplace hazard complaint at the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division website.
That includes the Oregon Department of Justice, which received a complaint over poor ventilation in a Central Oregon office.
“This complaint lacked sufficient detail to process and was evaluated by Oregon OSHA management as ‘no action’ and was not submitted to ODOJ for a response,” agency spokesperson Jenny Hansson said in an email. “No inspection was conducted and no citation was issued. This complaint was closed with no further action needed.”
Multnomah County received a similar complaint alleging employees weren’t being offered respirators despite poor air quality in the office. The county declined to comment, saying Oregon OSHA did not inform it about the complaint.
In Prineville, an employee working at the Meta data center filed a complaint alleging the company wasn’t providing temporary employees with protective equipment amid harsh wildfire smoke.
Ashley Settle, a spokesperson for Meta, said an inspector investigated the allegations during an onsite visit and determined there was no basis for a noncompliance finding.
Oregon Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Julia Shumway for questions: [email protected].