MSHA Reforms Lead to Significant Improvements
Administrator Joseph A. Main has said that the reforms have been "real game changers."
The assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health, Joseph A. Main, said the Pattern of Violations reforms developed by the Mine Safety and Health Administration have been "real game changers" in protecting miners and promoting a culture focused on safety and health in mines, according to a news release from the agency.
"The POV reforms sent a message that chronic violator behavior would no longer be tolerated. That message translated into a dramatic reduction in the number of mines with chronic violation records," said Main. "We have also seen significant improvements in violation and injury rates at mines served with a POV notice."
The number of mines identified in POV screenings has gone from 51 down to just 3 since 2010.
"The POV reforms we have put in place provide mine operators with guidance on how to improve compliance if they start down the wrong path, and most importantly, to better protect our nation's miners from injury, illness and death," said Main. "In fact, a number of mines proactively implemented corrective action programs, which is what both Congress and our rule encouraged."