Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link Skip directly to A-Z link Skip directly to A-Z link


Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC twenty four seven. Saving Lives, Protecting People
Search
            ×
                        Mining
                        Mining
                            NIOSH
                            All CDC
                    Submit
                For a full list of topics:A-Z Index
                Advanced Search
            Advanced Search


The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)





Mining Facts - 2007 (HTML)
Keywords: Fatality rates Injury rates Non-fatal days lost rates
This page is archived for historical purposes and is no longer being maintained or updated.
On This Page
Mining Operations
Employees
Fatalities
Mining operations, 2007
Contracting companies, 2007
Employment characteristics, 2007
Mining Occupational Fatalities (per 100,000 FTE employees), 2007
Nonfatal Lost-time Injuries (per 100 FTE employees), 2007
DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2009–157

Mining Operations
In 2007, a total of 14,871 mining operations reported employment data to the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). [1]  Almost half (48.4%) were sand and gravel mines, followed by stone mines (31.2%), coal mines (13.7%), nonmetal mines (4.9%), and metal mines (1.9%).

Employees
There were 271,414 mine operator employees, [2] or 275,871 full-time equivalent (FTE) [3] workers. For mine operators, 18.9% of the employee hours were for underground work locations, while 81.1% of the employee hours were for surface work locations. [4]
Of the 106,709 independent contractor employees (or 60,892 FTE workers), 36.4% were coal contractor employees and 63.6% were noncoal contractor employees.

Click on the image to enlarge.
Data for the previous chart showing the number of employee hours (in millions) by commodity and year
Commodity and Type
of Employer
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007Coal Operator
185.4
170.3
157.3
168.4
163.8
157.1
166.5
181.3
189.0
186.5Metal Operator
93.0
83.4
77.4
68.8
58.5
55.5
59.5
63.4
67.9
75.5Nonmetal Operator
57.2
54.7
53.1
50.6
47.5
46.9
46.9
46.2
46.4
46.5Stone Operator
164.8
167.8
168.5
166.1
161.7
160.0
163.5
168.6
170.8
166.5Sand and Gravel Operator
75.0
78.9
78.1
77.0
75.3
74.8
76.6
78.4
79.6
76.7Coal Contractor
36.4
35.4
36.2
40.3
36.5
35.0
38.5
43.0
46.2
45.5Noncoal Contractor
43.3
47.8
54.2
49.8
39.2
39.9
46.8
54.1
62.6
76.3

Fatalities
In 2007, there were 67 occupational mining fatalities, compared to 73 in 2006.  The overall fatality rate was 21.9 per 100,000 FTE workers.
The fatality rate for mine operator employees was 19.7 per 100,000 FTE workers (n=49; 73.1%), while the rate for contractor employees was 31.3 (n=18; 26.9%).
Noncoal contractors had the highest fatality rate (33.3), followed by coal operators (31.2), coal contractors (28.0), and metal operators (21.1) per 100,000 FTE workers.
The fatality rate at underground work locations was 47.2 per 100,000 FTE workers (n=27; 40.3%) compared to the lower rate at surface locations of 16.1 (n=40; 59.7%).
Click on the image to enlarge.
Data for the previous chart showing the number and rate of fatalities per 100,000 FTE employees by year
Fatalities
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007Underground number
16
16
20
37
27Surface number
40
39
37
36
40Underground rate
35.7
33.2
37.7
66.0
47.2Surface rate
18.9
17.5
15.7
14.6
16.1
Nonfatal Lost-time Injuries
There were 7,742 nonfatal lost-time injuries reported to MSHA in 2007 (2,645 at underground and 5,097 at surface work locations).  These injuries occurred at an overall rate of 2.5 per 100 FTE workers and resulted in a total of 426,219 days lost from work. [5]
The underground nonfatal lost-time injury rate was greater than the surface injury rate (4.6 vs. 2.0 per 100 FTE workers).
The back continued to be the most frequently reported body part injured, accounting for 1,371 nonfatal lost-time injuries, 77,027 days lost from work, and 18.1 of all days lost.
Sprains and strains were the most frequently reported nature of injury (n=3,310; 42.8%).
Click on the image to enlarge.
Data for the previous chart showing the distribution of nonfatal lost-time injuries by accident class
Accident Class
Number
PercentHandling materials
2,492
32.2Slip or fall of person
1,847
23.9Machinery
805
10.4Powered haulage
796
10.3Hand tools
661
8.5Fall of ground
469
6.1All other
672
8.7Total
7,742
100.0

Mining operations, 2007
Commodity and Type of Employer
Underground Mining Operations [1]
Surface Mining Operations [1]
Total Mining Operations [1]Coal Operator
631
1,399
2,030Metal Operator
97
181
278Nonmetal Operator
48
677
725Stone Operator
113
4,526
4,639Sand & Gravel Operator
Not applicable
7,199
7,199Operator Total
889
13,982
14,871

Contracting companies, 2007
Commodity and Type of Employer
Number of CompaniesCoal Contractor
2,999Noncoal Contractor
5,400Contractor Total
8,399

Employment characteristics, 2007
Commodity and Type of Employer
Underground Employees [2]
Surface Employees [2]
Total Employees
[2]
Underground FTE Employees [3]
Surface FTE Employees [3]
Total FTE Employees [3]Coal Operator
37,829
46,242
84,071
42,238
51,027
93,265Metal Operator
5,333
30,667
36,000
5,437
32,309
37,746Nonmetal Operator
2,411
20,453
22,864
2,478
20,788
23,265Stone Operator
1,845
80,873
82,718
2,063
81,191
83,254Sand & Gravel Operator
Not applicable
45,761
45,761
Not applicable
38,340
38,340Operator Total
47,418
223,996
271,414
52,216
223,655
275,871Coal Contractor
5,160
33,705
38,865
3,071
19,670
22,741Noncoal Contractor
3,039
64,805
67,844
1,935
36,216
38,151Contractor Total
8,199
98,510
106,709
5,006
55,886
60,892Total
55,617
322,506
378,123
57,222
279,541
336,763



Mining Occupational Fatalities (per 100,000 FTE employees), 2007
Commodity and Type of Employer
Underground Fatalities
Underground Fatality Rate
Surface Fatalities
Surface Fatality Rate
Fatalities
Fatality RateCoal Operator
18
42.6
10
21.1
28
31.2Metal Operator
3
55.2
4
14.4
7
21.1Nonmetal Operator
1
40.4
0
0.0
1
5.0Stone Operator
0
0.0
8
11.4
8
11.1Sand & Gravel Operator
Not applicable
Not applicable
5
15.0
5
15.0Operator Total
22
42.1
27
13.8
49
19.7Coal Contractor
3
97.7
3
16.3
6
28.0Noncoal Contractor
2
103.4
10
29.3
12
33.3Contractor Total
5
99.9
13
24.8
18
31.3Total
27
47.2
40
16.1
67
21.9



Nonfatal Lost-time Injuries (per 100 FTE employees), 2007
Commodity and Type of Employer
Underground Injuries
Underground Injury Rate
Surface Injuries
Surface Injury Rate
Injuries
Injury RateCoal Operator
2,120
5.0
822
1.7
2,942
3.3Metal Operator
178
3.3
620
2.2
798
2.4Nonmetal Operator
91
3.7
417
2.4
508
2.5Stone Operator
36
1.7
1,844
2.6
1,880
2.6Sand & Gravel Operator
Not applicable
Not applicable
657
2.0
657
2.0Operator Total
2,425
4.6
4,360
2.2
6,785
2.7Coal Contractor
177
5.8
283
1.5
460
2.1Noncoal Contractor
43
2.2
454
1.3
497
1.4Contractor Total
220
4.4
737
1.4
957
1.7Total
2,645
4.6
5,097
2.0
7,742
2.5


Data source: Publicly released data files of employment and accident/injury/illness collected by MSHA under 30 CFR 50.
Notes: All analyses of accident data exclude office employees. Occupational fatalities exclude all cases under 17 years of age. Further statistical methodology is available on the NIOSH Internet. Data in the above tables may not add to totals shown because of independent rounding. Caution should be used when interpreting rates based on a small number of events.
Mines at which only independent contractors were working did not show any employment and were not counted.
Average number of employees working at individual mines during calendar quarters of active operations (includes office workers).
Full-time equivalent employees computed using reported employee hours (2,000 hours = 1 FTE).
Surface work locations include surface operations at underground mines, surface operations (strip or open pit), auger, culm banks, dredge, other surface operations, independent shops and yards, and mills or preparation plants.
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 more information about occupational safety and health topics, contact NIOSH at **1-800-CDC-INFO** (1-800-232-4636), TTY: 1-888-232-6348, or visit NIOSH's Ask an Occupational Safety and Health Question page.
See Also
Coal and metal/nonmetal mining facts - 2008
Coal and Metal/Nonmetal Mining Facts - 2008 (HTML)
Coal Contractor Mining Facts - 2001
Coal Contractor Mining Facts - 2002
Coal Contractor Mining Facts - 2003
Coal Contractor Mining Facts - 2004
Coal Contractor Mining Facts - 2005
Coal Contractor Mining Facts - 2006
Mining Fact Sheets
Rib Falls: A Major Ground Control Issue
Page last reviewed: April 7, 2022
Page last updated: April 7, 2022
Content source: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Mining Program
Facebook
        Twitter
        LinkedIn
        Syndicate Mining
        Site BrowserSafety and Health TopicsData & StatisticsMethodologyMine DisastersMSHA Data FilesMine & Mineworker ChartsTools & PublicationsTools You Can UsePublicationsNews & ArticlesResearch ProgramNORA Mining CouncilStrategic PlanMining Program, 2019-2023Miner Health Program, 2020-2030ProjectsContractsFunding OpportunitiesMining LinksAbout UsContact NIOSH MiningEmploymentFacilitiesHistoryVisitor Information NIOSH Homepage
 NIOSH A-Z
Workplace Safety & Health Topics
Publications and Products
Programs


About CDC
					Contact Us
					800-232-4636
 Facebook Twitter Instagram LinkedIn Youtube Pinterest Snapchat
 CONTACT CDC
				Contact Us
							Call 800-232-4636
							Email Us
			ABOUT CDC
				About CDC
							Jobs
							Funding
			POLICIES
				Accessibility
							External Links
							Privacy
							Policies
							No Fear Act
							FOIA
							OIG
							Nondiscrimination
							Vulnerability Disclosure Policy
			CONNECT WITH US
				Facebook
								Twitter
								Instagram
								LinkedIn
							Youtube
								Pinterest
								Snapchat
								Email
			LANGUAGES
				Español
							繁體中文
							Tiếng Việt
							한국어
							Tagalog
							Русский
							العربية
							Kreyòl Ayisyen
							Français
							Polski
							Português
							Italiano
							Deutsch
							日本語
							فارسی
							English


U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
			Accessibility
			External Links
			Privacy
			Policies
			No Fear Act
			FOIA
			Nondiscrimination
			OIG
			Vulnerability Disclosure Policy
			USA.gov


Exit Notification / Disclaimer Policy Close
 Links with this icon  indicate that you are leaving the CDC website. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cannot attest to the accuracy of a non-federal website.
				Linking to a non-federal website does not constitute an endorsement by CDC or any of its employees of the sponsors or the information and products presented on the website.
				You will be subject to the destination website's privacy policy when you follow the link.
				CDC is not responsible for Section 508 compliance (accessibility) on other federal or private website. Website Disclaimers
 Cancel Continue