When the nation first observed Workers Memorial Day on April 28, 1970, an estimated 38 U.S. workers suffered fatal on-the-job injuries each day and many more endured debilitating respiratory diseases and other life-altering illnesses related to workplace exposures. Today, work-related injuries in the U.S. claim about 15 people’s lives a day. In 2022, a reported 5,486 workers suffered fatal injuries,…
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MSHA Silica Rule Draws Ire of Industry
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) issued a final rule to “better protect the nation’s miners from health hazards associated with exposure to respirable crystalline silica, also known as silica dust or quartz dust.” The final rule lowers the permissible exposure limit of respirable crystalline silica to 50 micrograms per cu. meter of air for…
Read MoreMSHA Tackles Social Media
Right Now, MSHA Isn’t Reaching Many People Via Social Media In Any Category, And I Doubt That’ll Change Anytime Soon. By Brian Hendrix Do you follow MSHA on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter? Are you Facebook friends with MSHA? Have you downloaded MSHA’s “Miner Safety and Health App”? If you answered “yes” to any of those…
Read MoreDeere Makes Donation Match Commitment to Construction Angels
Continuing its commitment to the safety and wellbeing of the construction industry, John Deere announced that it is committed to matching donations, up to a total of $100,000, made to the Construction Angels nonprofit organization from Nov. 1 to Dec. 31. Construction Angels offers critical support when tragedy strikes, providing financial assistance, grief counseling services and long-term scholarship funding to…
Read MoreConveyors: A Look Ahead
Emerging Technology Is All About Designing For The Future By Innovating The Present. By R. Todd Swinderman Higher production demands across all bulk-handling segments require increased efficiency at the lowest cost of operation, in the safest and most effective manner possible. As conveyor systems become wider, faster and longer, more energy output and more controlled throughput will be needed. Add…
Read MoreSuzio Highlights NSSGA Small Business Concerns in House Testimony
Ric Suzio, vice president of Suzio York Hill Companies, testified in a House Small Business Committee hearing on the Department of Labor’s burdensome regulations. Representing the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA), he shared concerns about the effects of new regulatory rules on his family’s small business. “Small businesses thrive on predictability. Frequent, automatic changes hinder their ability to…
Read MoreThe Mine Silica Health Administration
It Looks Like MSHA Started With The OSHA Rule And Proceeded To Cut Everything That Looked Even Remotely Reasonable. By Brian Hendrix Way back in 2019, we heard that MSHA intended to put the “H” back in MSHA. MSHA Assistant Secretary David Zatezalo, told Congress that MSHA would to “put the ‘H’ back in ‘MSHA,’” by “aggressively enforc[ing] existing standards…
Read MoreMSHA’S Jurisdiction Over Borrow Pits
Does MSHA Really Have Jurisdiction Here? It Depends. By Brian Hendrix Once or twice a year, I receive a call from a company asking me some variation of this question: Does MSHA really have jurisdiction here? The “here” part of the question differs from call-to-call. It may be a maintenance shop located miles away from any mine, a facility that…
Read MoreBrian Hendrix Saw It Coming
Jan. 19, 2023 – Inside sources say that the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s (MSHA) proposed silica rule has now been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and is currently under review, which is the final step before the rule can be published in the Federal Register. No definitive word on what the content of the bill…
Read MoreWhat Is MSHA Doing With The Silica Rule?
MSHA Must Continue To Recognize Engineering Controls As The Primary Means To Eliminate Respirable Dust Within The Mine Atmosphere And Achieve Compliance. By Brian Hendrix Just a few days after the midterm elections in 2022, Sen. Joe Manchin and four of his colleagues in the Senate sent a letter to MSHA Assistant Secretary Chris Williamson to “formally request additional information…
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