Cell phone use while operating mobile equipment is a form of distracted driving and is extremely dangerous. MSHA and the Association of Equipment Manufacturers have jointly developed the following safety alert as a project within the alliance between the two organizations. The U.S. Department of Transportation reports that cell phones are involved in 6,000 auto fatalities each year. Operating mobile equipment has inherent risks…
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Review Commission Decision: Turn Over Employee Contact Information
In a split decision reported by Ellen Smith of Mine Safety and Health News, the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission on May 17 found that MSHA has the right to request employee contact information to interview mine employees who may have knowledge about conditions in a mine where MSHA was conducting a 110(c) investigation, and where dangerous conditions…
Read MoreEnhanced MSHA Enforcement to Begin July 1
On July 1, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) will begin enhanced enforcement of “Rules to Live By,” its initiative of standards commonly cited following mine deaths, as well as some standards for the coal industry.
Read MoreMSHA Touts MINER Act Anniversary
To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the enactment of the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act of 2006, Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Mine Safety and Health Administration Joseph A. Main issued the following statement:
Read MoreMSHA Enhancing Enforcement of ‘Rules to Live By’
In a meeting with mining industry stakeholders, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced that the agency is enhancing enforcement of its “Rules to Live By” initiative of standards commonly cited following mining deaths.
Read MoreMassachusetts Producer Settles with MSHA
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced a global settlement with Worcester Sand and Gravel Co. Inc. of Shrewsbury, Mass., to resolve citations and orders in three separate dockets. An administrative law judge with the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission approved the settlements amounting to $181,200, the largest penalty amounts recovered from a…
Read MoreEAJA Fees Not Available Where Secretary Vacated Seven Citations
By Ellen Smith A small limestone operator is not entitled to EAJA fees where the Secretary vacated seven citations issued against the operator after the MSHA inspector was no longer available to testify at a hearing, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled April 19.
Read MoreNo One Accepts Fatalities, Injuries or Illnesses as Cost of Doing Business
By R. Brian Hendrix Our mines and our miners have never been safer. Injury and illness rates across all sectors of the mining industry are at historic lows. The number of fatalities in 2015 dropped 38 percent from 2014. A miner is in a lot more danger driving to work than he is once he’s at work. Mining is not…
Read MoreFIRST LOOK – JUNE 2016
TOP NEWS Vulcan First-Quarter Revenues Leap 20 Percent Vulcan Materials Co. announced results for the first quarter ending March 31, 2016. The company said its first-quarter results reflect continued strong revenue growth and margin expansion. Martin Marietta Soars to Record Results in First Quarter Martin Marietta Materials Inc. reported results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2016. Ward Nye,…
Read MoreDo-It-Yourself Legal Representation
You Can Challenge MSHA Citations Without an Attorney, But How Do You Represent Yourself Successfully? By Donna Pryor
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