DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health 

September 2008

COAL CONTRACTOR 

MINING FACTS – 2005

The Mine Safety and Health Administration 

(MSHA) defines an independent contractor as any 

person, partnership, corporation, subsidiary of a 

corporation, firm, association or other organization 

that contracts to perform services or construction at 

a mine. Contractors that perform specific types of 

work are required to report the number of employees 

who work at coal mines and noncoal mines. 

Companies 

In 2005, a total of 2,503 contracting companies 

reported employment at coal mines to MSHA, or 

36.8% of all independent contractor companies. 

Employees 

A total of 32,639 employees,1

 corresponding to 

20,136 full-time equivalent (FTE)2

 employees, were 

reported by coal contractors to MSHA.

• Within the mining sectors,3 coal contractor 

employees comprised 7.0% of all employee 

hours reported to MSHA. 

• Coal contractor employee hours were reported 

for both underground (14.0%) and surface 

(86.0%) work locations.4

0

50

100

150

200

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Number of Employee Hours

(millions)

Coal Operator Metal Operator Nonmetal Operator

Stone Operator Sand & Gravel Oper Coal Contractor

Noncoal Contractor

Fatalities 

Five occupational fatalities occurred among coal 

contractor employees in 2005. These coal fatalities 

accounted for 71.4% of all fatalities attributed to independent contractors. 

• All five fatalities were at the surface work 

location. The coal contractor fatality rate was 

24.8 per 100,000 FTE employees. 

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Number of Fatalities

0

45

90

135

180

225

270

Fatality Rate

(per 100,000 Full-time Equivalent Employees)

Underground Surface

UG Rate Surf Rate

Nonfatal Lost-time Injuries 

There were 535 nonfatal lost-time injuries among 

coal contractor employees (213 at underground and 

322 at surface work locations) occurring at a rate of 

2.7 injuries per 100 FTE employees. These injuries 

resulted in 39,506 days lost5 from work, comprising 

8.6% of days lost across all mining sectors. 

• The underground nonfatal lost-time injury rate 

was greater than the surface injury rate (7.5 vs. 

1.9 per 100 FTE workers). 

• The most frequent classification of nonfatal losttime injuries for coal contractor employees 

involved handling materials (n=150; 28.0%), 

followed by slip or fall of person (n=126; 

23.6%). 

• Sprains and strains were the most frequently 

reported nature of injury (n=203; 37.9%). 

• The back was the most frequently reported body 

part injured (n=87; 16.3%) and accounted for 

10,703 days lost from work. 

Distribution of Nonfatal Lost-time Injuries

by Accident Class, 2001-2005

11% 7% 7% 6%

33% 23%

13%

Handling materials

Slip or fall of person

Powered haulage

Machinery

Hand tools

Note: "Fall of ground" includes MSHA's Accident/Injury/Illness classification for fall of face, rib, pillar, 

side, or highwall (from in place); fall of roof, back, or brow (from in place); and underground 

machinery cases when the source of injury was caving rock, coal, ore, or waste.
TM 

 

Mining Characteristics, 2005 

Commodity and 

Type of Employer 

No. of 

Mines 

No. of 

Companies 

No. of 

Employees1

No. of FTE

Employees2 Fatality Rate 

Nonfatal 

Lost-time 

Injury Rate 

Coal Operator 2,063 -- 78,281 87,184 19.5 3.5 

Metal Operator 263 -- 26,442 27,773 18.0 2.4 

Nonmetal Operator 739 -- 19,678 20,014 20.0 2.5 

Stone Operator 4,490 -- 69,759 73,650 20.4 3.1 

Sand and Gravel Operator 7,111 -- 37,705 34,258 26.3 2.5 

Operator Total 14,666 -- 231,865 242,879 20.6 3.0 

Coal Contractor -- 2,503 32,639 20,136 24.8 2.7 

Noncoal Contractor -- 4,297 46,623 25,590 7.8 1.6 

Contractor Total -- 6,800 79,262 45,726 15.3 2.1 

TOTAL 311,127 288,605 19.8 2.9 

Fatality rates were computed per 100,000 FTE employees. Nonfatal lost-time injury rates were computed per 100 FTE employees. 

Data source: Publicly released files of employment and accident/injury/illness data collected by MSHA under 30 CFR 50. 

Notes: All analyses exclude office employees, except for the total number of mining operations. Analyses of fatalities exclude all 

individuals under 17 years of age and all individuals who were not classified as employees of a mining operator or mining contractor. 

Further statistical methodology is available on the NIOSH Internet [http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining/statistics/method.htm]. 1

Number of employees is the average number of persons working at individual establishments during calendar quarters of active 

 operations. 

2

Full-time equivalent employees were computed using reported employee hours (2,000 hours = 1 FTE). 

3

Mining sectors: coal operators, metal operators, nonmetal operators, stone operators, sand and gravel operators, coal contractors, and 

 noncoal contractors. 

4

Surface work locations include surface operations at underground mines (surface shops and yards, tipple physically located at the mine 

 site), surface operations (strip or open pit mines including associated shops and yards), auger mining operations, culm banks 

 (reworking of mine dumps or refuse pile), dredge (mining operations conducted from a platform floating on water), independent shops 

 and yards not associated with a specific mine, and mill or preparation plant. 

5

Includes actual days away from work and/or days of restricted work activity. For permanently disabling injuries only, statutory days 

 charged by MSHA were used if they exceeded the total lost workdays. 

To receive NIOSH documents or for more information about 

occupational safety and health topics, contact NIOSH at 

1–800–CDC–INFO (1–800–232–4636) 

1–888–232–6348 (TTY) 

e-mail: cdcinfo@cdc.gov

or visit the NIOSH Web site at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh

DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2008-155 

SAFER • HEALTHIER • PEOPLE