Latest news with #FederalMineSafetyandHealthActof1977
Epoch Times
14-05-2025
- Health
- Epoch Times
Judge Orders HHS to Restore Jobs in Health Monitoring Program for West Virginia Coal Miners
A West Virginia federal judge on Tuesday ordered the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to reverse the terminations of nearly 200 workers who oversee a health monitoring program for coal miners after they were laid off last month. Judge Irene C. Berger of the District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia granted a preliminary injunction compelling HHS to restore all personnel to the Respiratory Health Division of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in Morgantown, West Virginia. Workers in the division are responsible for screening and reviewing medical examinations submitted by outside providers to determine whether there is evidence that miners have developed a respiratory ailment called pneumoconiosis, more commonly known as black lung disease. 'Testing for, diagnosing, preventing, and researching black lung is a highly specialized field—it simply is not possible to transfer the duties of the RHD employees to others without a period of transition and training,' the judge wrote in her ruling. 'Losing the services of these experienced and dedicated employees is an aspect of the irreparable harm to the miners and the public that cannot and should not be ignored.' Berger ordered HHS to continue its Coal Workers Health Surveillance Program within NIOSH after finding the department lacked the authority to 'unilaterally cancel' it. Related Stories 5/14/2025 5/13/2025 Additionally, the judge ordered the restoration of a program called Part 90, which allows miners who present evidence of pneumoconiosis to transfer to less dusty jobs, without a reduction in pay, to protect them from continued exposure. Berger's decision comes after nearly 200 workers at the NIOSH facility were placed on administrative leave in April as part of restructuring within HHS. It's part of wider cost-cutting efforts by the Trump administration that have seen thousands of federal employees across various departments laid off. Berger did not specify in her order exactly how many of the jobs must be restored within the health division. Lawsuit Alleges Workers Left Without Critical Protections The ruling was issued in response to a lawsuit filed against HHS and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in April by Harry Wiley, a Raleigh County electrician who works in coal mines. According to the lawsuit, Wiley was diagnosed with black lung disease in November 2024. Federal law mandates that regular health screenings be made available to coal miners. Wiley argued the job cuts at the Respiratory Health Division meant NIOSH was unable to review applications or offer job transfers, which in turn left him and other miners without critical protections guaranteed under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977. Berger agreed, writing in her ruling that 'uncontroverted evidence before the Court overwhelmingly establishes that the mandatory statutory duties cannot effectively be fulfilled without an injunction terminating' the job cuts. She ordered that, in the event of reorganization, there be no 'pause, stoppage or gap in the protections and services mandated by Congress in the Mine Act and the attendant regulations for the health and safety of miners.' Berger added that HHS failed to present evidence that employees with the qualifications necessary to operate the health monitoring unit screening for black lung exist elsewhere in HHS. HHS also presented no evidence that individual employees or groups of employees could be terminated without impacting NIOSH's ability to perform the mandatory duties set forth in the Mine Act and other regulations, she said. The judge gave Kennedy 20 days to submit written certification proving that HHS has complied with the court's order. The Epoch Times has contacted a spokesperson for HHS for comment. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Spokane mining safety lab loses staff as part of 10,000 federal health job cuts: 'I don't believe the administration understands the work being done at these sites'
Apr. 1—The wave of federal firings by the Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday included workers at a specialized laboratory in Spokane that studies mining and wildland firefighting safety. The department notified the Spokane Research Laboratory's union Monday that approximately 200 employees at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health facilities in Pittsburgh and Spokane would be affected. That includes perhaps 90 employees locally. American Federation of Government Employees Local #1916 Director Lilas Soukup, who is based in Pittsburgh but also represents the lab in Spokane, said HHS fired managers Tuesday and plans to eliminate the union-represented employees effective June 30. Soukup said about 45 union members in Spokane are part of about 90 workers that include contract workers. The firing of management leaves union employees without supervision or direction, a safety and security concern, Soukup said . Workers don't have any guidance on whether they are supposed to continue research or work towards closing the facility. "This was a very haphazard approach," Soukup said. "I don't believe the administration understands the work being done at these sites." Tucked behind a BMW dealership in the Logan neighborhood in North Spokane, the Spokane Research Laboratory holds two departments: the Spokane Mining Research Division studies health and safety for miners, and the Western Sates Division, which is smaller, studies safety for other industries — including wildland firefighting, fisheries, logging, and oil and gas drilling. The Pittsburgh Mining Research Division focuses more on coal mining, whereas Spokane's lab focuses on hard rock mining. Soukup said the research is mandated by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 and should require congressional action to abolish. Sen. Patty Murray said in a news release the future of the office is unclear and that the Trump administration refused to answer her questions about it. "The Trump administration's mass firings of people researching how to better protect American workers' safety on the job is a disaster waiting to happen," Murray said in a statement. "Those firings included nearly all of the researchers at the Spokane NIOSH Research Laboratory, who are doing critical and time-sensitive work studying how to protect workers' health and safety on the job in dangerous fields like mining, firefighting, and the maritime industry." The firings are among 10,000 reported across HHS, including the closing of the Region 10 office in Seattle, which serves Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. NIOSH is organized under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is under HHS. Around 873 staff are expected to be cut from NIOSH, CBS News reported. An HHS fact sheet released last week said NIOSH would be consolidated into the new "Administration for a Healthy America" for better efficiency. Several probationary employees were fired from Spokane Research Laboratory as part of DOGE layoffs in February, including Jessica Perkins, a former program specialist. Perkins said the lab's work is critical to keeping American workers safe as the Trump administration calls for more domestic mining to decrease foreign reliance on critical minerals. Art Miller, a longtime researcher at the facility who retired three years ago, had continued as a contracted consultant until February when he was suddenly locked out of his email. "I just thought it was unprecedented and weird," Miller said. Miller is an expert in mine air quality and airborne toxins who began his career working for the U.S. Bureau of Mines until the agency closed in 1996 and transferred its health research to NIOSH. That's when he moved to Spokane. When the Bureau closed, workers were upset, Miller said, but the process was handled differently. There were open discussions and progress updates months before, and Congress held votes about it. Today, best practices and technology developed through NIOSH's research are used in mines around the world. No one else does this kind of research, Miller said. "Every worker in the country deserves to go home safe," Miller said. He worries the last 10 years of his work will be wasted. He was helping a small private company develop a portable device that can detect airborne silica — which is toxic if inhaled. The device could also be used by the construction industry where workers are often exposed, but without government grant funding the company probably won't be able to finish the project. James Hanlon's reporting for The Spokesman-Review is funded in part by Report for America and by members of the Spokane community. This story can be republished by other organizations for free under a Creative Commons license. For more information on this, please contact our newspaper's managing editor.
