None of the nation’s mines met the Mine Safety & Health Administration’s (MSHA) criteria for pattern of violations (POV) in the agency’s most recent screening for a 12-month enforcement period ending last November.
According to MSHA, the result marked the first time since 2021 that no mines met the criteria for POV.
As MSHA describes, POV screenings enable it to identify chronic violators and mine operators that show a disregard for miners’ health and safety. For the second year in a row, MSHA conducted at least two POV screenings in a calendar year, setting new precedent and underscoring the agency’s efforts to reduce fatal and serious accidents and improve operator compliance.
“When the mining industry experienced a troubling increase in fatalities in 2023, MSHA actively led efforts to combat the trend, including enhanced enforcement like pattern of violations and impact inspections to improve compliance and focus on chronic violators,” says Chris Williamson, assistant secretary at MSHA. “Mining fatal accidents decreased by 30 percent in 2024, and no mines were identified during the most recent POV screening. We know from recent experience and history that an active, adequately staffed MSHA is critical to preventing accidents and protecting miners’ safety and health.”
The Mine Act authorizes MSHA to issue a POV notice to any mine demonstrating a pattern of significant and substantial (S&S) violations. The POV screening process examines all U.S. mines, identifying those with a high number of S&S violations and other safety and health compliance problems.
An S&S violation is one that could contribute in a significant and substantial way to the cause and effect of a safety or health hazard, MSHA says.
“MSHA’s POV screenings have helped improve compliance beyond just the mines that have met the screening criteria,” Williamson says.
For the 200 mines with the most S&S violations, those violations have decreased 15 percent over the past two years. The same mines have also seen a 10 percent reduction in total violations and a 26 percent decrease in elevated enforcement actions.
“POV remains a critical tool to rein in chronic violators and protect the nation’s most vulnerable miners,” Williamson says.
MSHA offers two online calculators to help mine operators monitor compliance: the POV calculator, which allows mine operators to monitor performance under the POV screening criteria and alerts mine operators that corrective actions are needed; and the S&S calculator, which enables mine operators to monitor their S&S violations.
According to MSHA, mine operators are responsible for tracking their violation and injury histories to determine whether they need to take action to avoid meeting the POV screening criteria.
Related: Chris Williamson reflects on tenure as MSHA assistant secretary
