The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has released results of a Pattern of Violations screening that identifies chronic violators and mine operators that show a disregard for miners’ health and safety. The results follow the agency’s reviews which, for the first time, included more than one POV screening by MSHA in a calendar year. MSHA conducted a POV screening…
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No time to put your head in the sand – MSHA and failure-to-abate orders
Lately I’ve been giving some thought to what MSHA considers “enhanced enforcement,” which really refers to enforcement actions that MSHA takes against a mine operator beyond the § 104(a) citations that are the most frequent result of a mine inspection. (We call them “§ 104(a) citations” because the authority for issuing them comes from § 104(a) of the Mine Act.…
Read MoreWait…What? A Potentially Dangerous Development in § 105(c) Retaliation Cases
By Willa B. Perlmutter In my last column, I talked about a coming shift in the analysis the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission will use when it considers retaliation cases brought by the Secretary of Labor or by miners under § 105(c) of the Mine Act. For those of you that missed that column, here’s the deal: until…
Read MoreFisher Phillips: Five 2023 mine safety predictions
Editor’s note: the following is an op-ed from Fisher Phillips. As the calendar turns to a new year, the Mine Safety and Health Administration appears to have found its footing – and that means mine operators need to be on their toes in 2023. After a presidential administration change, retirements throughout the inspector ranks, and an anemic regulatory agenda, MSHA…
Read MoreLessons learned after a mine accident
A few weeks back, one of my clients had an accident at its crusher. From a legal perspective, the details aren’t terribly important. Two guys were hurt, one very seriously. He spent a week in the hospital and faces a long road of rehab ahead. The site supervisor sustained less serious injuries, but he too spent a couple of nights…
Read MoreThe Sixth Circuit and Advance Notice – The Cavalry Never Showed Up After All
By Willa B. Perlmutter In my very first column for this publication, I wrote about the KenAmerican Resources case that was then pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, based in Cincinnati. At the time, I wrote that I hoped the Sixth Circuit would take the opportunity to provide much-needed guidance on what exactly “advance notice”…
Read MoreA Sword and a Shield: Workplace Examinations Under the New § 56/57.18002
By Willa B. Perlmutter In my last column, I talked about MSHA’s plan to issue a new rule requiring surface mine operators to develop and implement written programs that would improve mobile equipment safety. The comment period closed in February and, at this writing, about a month later, MSHA hasn’t yet tipped its hand as to what, if anything, it…
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