Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health Joseph Main said that operator compliance is up, stating that the percentage of inspections resulting in zero citations rose to 25 percent in 2015 from an average of 20 percent.
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Commission Need Not Decide on Validity of MSHA’s Penalty Criteria
Commission judges do not need to defer to any element of MSHA’s Part 100 regulations for assessing civil penalties, since the Commission has a Congressional mandate to independently assess penalties after making findings of fact, the Commission ruled in a Sept. 16 decision.
Read More‘Stuff’ Happens
The whole point of a safety and health program is to implement processes and systems that serve to prevent those undesirable events that lead to injuries and damage to property or interruptions. In a perfect world our programmed safety and health initiatives would work flawlessly. No injuries would occur, breakdowns would be eliminated and our production, maintenance and service operations…
Read MoreHold ‘Em, Fold ‘Em
Guidelines for Contesting Citations, and When to Use Them. I am often asked for advice on whether or not to contest a citation. The answers are always different, but the principles are all the same. As such, I thought I would take this opportunity to try to lay those out again for everyone to consider, along with a couple of…
Read MoreIndustry Faces Increased Regulation in 2016
According to the National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association (NSSGA), stone producers can anticipate increased regulations from MSHA in 2016, if the agency’s recently released Fall Regulatory Agenda is any indication.
Read MoreFirst Look – November 2015
TOP NEWS ConExpo Latin America Has Strong Debut More than 32,000 people attended ConExpo Latin America, walking through 40,000 sq. meters of exhibits from 300 manufacturers; and taking advantage of educational opportunities such as Rock Products’ aggregates seminar. House Committee Approves Transportation Bill The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee unanimously approved the Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform (STRR) Act of…
Read MoreMSHA Sends Out Confined Spaces Alert
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has sent out a confined spaces alert.
Read MoreNSSGA Tells MSHA to Pursue Risk-Based Enforcement
The National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association’s (NSSGA) message to MSHA at a recent stakeholder meeting was clear. “MSHA enforcement should focus on areas of greatest risk,” said Joseph Casper, NSSGA vice president for safety, at the Charlotte, N.C., meeting on Oct. 22.
Read MoreMSHA Releases Fatality Data for Third Quarter
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced that its summary of U.S. mining deaths from July 1 through Sept. 30, 2015, shows seven fatalities occurred in industry accidents. In the first nine months of 2015, 25 fatalities occurred, eight fewer than in the same period in 2014.
Read MoreMSHA Hits Aggregates Plants During August Impact Inspections
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced that federal inspectors issued 193 citations and 13 orders during special impact inspections conducted at 14 coal mines and seven metal and nonmetal mines in August.
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