Latest news with #MSHA
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump administration reverses MSHA closures that coal mining advocates fought to keep
CLARKSBURG, (WBOY) — Appalachia and coal miner advocacy groups celebrated that dozens of Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) offices that were scheduled to close will now remain open, the Trump administration announced Thursday. A total of 34 offices were set to close, including one in Summersville, West Virginia, after being targeted by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) earlier this year. The terminated leases for the offices would have saved an estimated $18 million, the Associated Press reported, but the United Mine Workers of America said that the closures would have had 'dangerous implications.' 'The idea that anyone would even consider shuttering dozens of MSHA field offices, most of which are located in remote mining communities, shows a fundamental misunderstanding of what it takes to keep miners safe,' UMWA International President Cecil Roberts said in a press release. Elon Musk is leaving the Trump administration after criticizing president's 'big beautiful bill' The union press release said the group is relieved that the closures have been reversed. Appalachian Voices, a group that spoke out against what it called a 'targeted attack on Appalachian coal miner safety' after announced cuts in MSHA and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), also applauded the reversal. 'For months, coal communities have been raising the alarm about how cuts to MSHA and NIOSH would be disastrous for our miners,' Vonda Robinson, Vice President of the National Black Lung Association said in the Appalachian Voices press release. 'We're glad that the administration has listened and restored these offices, keeping mine inspectors in place.' Some MSHA offices are still listed on the chopping block on the DOGE website, but the statement did not indicate whether those closings will move forward, the Associated Press reported. According to the AP, MSHA has seen a reduction in staff by 27% in past 10 years, even without the cuts proposed by DOGE. DOGE also ordered cuts in NIOSH, including hundreds of jobs in Morgantown; some of those jobs have been restored. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump reverses plan to close more than 30 mine safety offices
The Trump administration has reversed course on a plan to close 34 Mine Safety and Health Administration offices. (Karen Kasmauski | Getty Images) President Donald Trump's administration has reversed course on a plan to close more than 30 mine safety offices, something union leaders and advocates said would compromise inspectors' ability to protect coal miner's lives. Leases of the office, which employ coal mine inspectors, were set to end this summer along with several other federal offices under a plan by the Department of Government Efficiency. A spokesperson for the Department of Labor confirmed Thursday that 34 Mine Safety and Health Adminsitration offices will be retained. They said the agency 'has been working closely with [the General Services Administration] to ensure our MSHA inspectors have the resources they need to carry out their core mission to prevent death, illness, and injury from mining and promote safe and healthy workplaces for American miners.' The reversal comes amid a push back from the Black Lung Association, the United Mine Workers of America, and others on what advocates called the Trump administration's 'attacks on coal miner safety.' In April, workers at the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety were put on administrative leave due to 'reorganizations' at the federal level. According to an analysis from the Appalachian Citizens' Law Center, the MSHA offices that were slated to close performed more than 16,600 safety and health inspections — with more than 230 of those done in West Virginia — between February 2024 and 2025. Earlier this month, a federal judge ordered workers from NIOSH's Respiratory Health Division back to work, ending a reduction in force that prevented coal miners with black lung disease from having the option to transfer to less dusty areas of the mine to prevent further illness and injury. MSHA had delayed the implementation of a new silica rule aimed at protecting coal miners from the dust that causes black lung disease. The rule was set to be effective in April but will now be effective in August. 'I'm happy they're going to keep these MSHA offices open,' Gary Hairston, president of the National Black Lung Association, said in a news release. 'We need these offices that are close to the mines so that MSHA can conduct safety inspections and respond to accidents in a timely way. Now we need MSHA to enforce the new silica rule, and we need Congress to give MSHA enough funding to do its job.' In a statement Friday, the United Mine Workers of America, a labor union representing coal miners, said the organization is relieved by the decision but called on the Department of Labor to be transparent about which offices remain are still at risk, and to stop remaining efforts to reduce the government's mine safety infrastructure. 'The idea that anyone would even consider shuttering dozens of MSHA field offices, most of which are located in remote mining communities, shows a fundamental misunderstanding of what it takes to keep miners safe,' UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said in the statement. 'We've said from day one that cutting these offices would compromise inspectors' ability to respond quickly to accidents, enforce safety regulations, and protect the lives of our members and their coworkers.' In a statement Friday, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-West Virginia, and chair of the Senate Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee, said she was glad to hear that many of West Virginia's MSHA offices will remain open. 'I have raised this issue directly with [Department of Labor] Secretary [Lori] Chavez-DeRemer because I was concerned about the impact these closures could have on mine safety and workers' access to support,' Capito said. 'Keeping these offices open is the right decision — and a win for miners, inspectors, and the communities they serve.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
New Indian Express
2 days ago
- Business
- New Indian Express
Trump administration reverses planned closures of 3 dozen US mine safety offices
CHARLESTON, The Trump administration is dropping plans to terminate leases for 34 offices in the Mine Safety and Health Administration, the agency responsible for enforcing mine safety laws, the Department of Labor said Thursday. Earlier this year, the Department of Government Efficiency, created by President Donald Trump and run by Elon Musk, had targeted federal agencies for spending cuts, including terminating leases for three dozen MSHA offices. Seven of those offices were in Kentucky alone. Ending the MSHA leases had been projected to save $18 million. Musk said this week that he's leaving his job as a senior adviser. A statement released by a Labor Department spokesperson Thursday said it has been working closely with the General Services Administration 'to ensure our MSHA inspectors have the resources they need to carry out their core mission to prevent death, illness, and injury from mining and promote safe and healthy workplaces for American miners.' Some MSHA offices are still listed on the chopping block on the DOGE website, but the statement did not indicate whether those closings will move forward. MSHA was created by Congress within the Labor Department in 1978, in part because state inspectors were seen as too close to the industry to force coal companies to take the sometimes costly steps necessary to protect miners. MSHA is required to inspect each underground mine quarterly and each surface mine twice a year.
2 days ago
- Business
Trump administration reverses planned closures of 3 dozen US mine safety offices
CHARLESTON, -- The Trump administration is dropping plans to terminate leases for 34 offices in the Mine Safety and Health Administration, the agency responsible for enforcing mine safety laws, the Department of Labor said Thursday. Earlier this year, the Department of Government Efficiency, created by President Donald Trump and run by Elon Musk, had targeted federal agencies for spending cuts, including terminating leases for three dozen MSHA offices. Seven of those offices were in Kentucky alone. Ending the MSHA leases had been projected to save $18 million. Musk said this week that he's leaving his job as a senior adviser. A statement released by a Labor Department spokesperson Thursday said it has been working closely with the General Services Administration 'to ensure our MSHA inspectors have the resources they need to carry out their core mission to prevent death, illness, and injury from mining and promote safe and healthy workplaces for American miners.' Some MSHA offices are still listed on the chopping block on the DOGE website, but the statement did not indicate whether those closings will move forward. MSHA was created by Congress within the Labor Department in 1978, in part because state inspectors were seen as too close to the industry to force coal companies to take the sometimes costly steps necessary to protect miners. MSHA is required to inspect each underground mine quarterly and each surface mine twice a year. 'That's a relief and good news for miners and the inspectors at MSHA,' said Jack Spadaro, a longtime mine safety investigator and environmental specialist who worked for the agency. Mining fatalities over the past four decades have dropped significantly, in large part because of the dramatic decline in coal production. But the proposed DOGE cuts would have required MSHA inspectors to travel farther to get to a mine. 'I don't know what they were thinking when they talked about closing offices,' Spadaro said. 'They obviously did not understand the nature of the frequency and depth of inspections that go on in mines. It's important for the inspectors to be near the mine operations that they're inspecting.' A review in March of publicly available data by the Appalachian Citizens' Law Center indicates that nearly 17,000 health and safety inspections were conducted from the beginning of 2024 through February 2025 by staff at MSHA offices in the facilities on the chopping block. MSHA, which also oversees metal and nonmetal mines, already was understaffed. Over the past decade, it has seen a 27% reduction in total staff, including 30% of enforcement staff in general and 50% of enforcement staff for coal mines, the law center said. Coal industry advocates are also trying to save hundreds of jobs within the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Some estimates had about 850 of the agency's roughly 1,000 employees being cut by the Trump administration. Earlier this month, a federal judge ordered the restoration of a health monitoring program for coal miners and rescinded layoffs within NIOSH's respiratory health division in Morgantown, West Virginia. The division is responsible for screening and reviewing medical exams to determine whether there is evidence that coal miners have developed a respiratory ailment, commonly known as black lung disease. At a May 14 Congressional hearing, U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he was reversing the firing of about 330 NIOSH workers. That same day, the United Mine Workers of America was among several groups that filed a lawsuit seeking to reinstate all NIOSH staff and functions. 'For months, coal communities have been raising the alarm about how cuts to MSHA and NIOSH would be disastrous for our miners,' said Vonda Robinson, vice president of the National Black Lung Association. 'We're glad that the administration has listened and restored these offices, keeping mine inspectors in place.' 'We're going to keep making progress and do whatever it takes to protect coal miners from black lung disease and accidents,' she said.
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Business Standard
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Trump admin reverses planned closures of 3 dozen US mine safety offices
The Donald Trump administration is dropping plans to terminate leases for 34 offices in the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), the agency responsible for enforcing mine safety laws, the Department of Labour said Thursday. Earlier this year, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), created by President Donald Trump and run by Elon Musk, targeted federal agencies for spending cuts, including terminating leases for three dozen MSHA offices. Seven of those offices were in Kentucky alone. Ending the MSHA leases had been projected to save $18 million. Musk said this week that he's leaving his job as a senior advisor to the Trump administration. A statement released by a Labour Department spokesperson said it has been working closely with the General Services Administration "to ensure our MSHA inspectors have the resources they need to carry out their core mission to prevent death, illness, and injury from mining and promote safe and healthy workplaces for American miners". Some MSHA offices are still listed on the chopping block on the DOGE website, but the statement did not indicate whether those closings will move forward. MSHA was created by Congress within the Labour Department in 1978, in part because state inspectors were seen as too close to the industry to force coal companies to take the sometimes costly steps necessary to protect miners. MSHA is required to inspect each underground mine quarterly and each surface mine twice a year. Mining fatalities over the past four decades have dropped significantly, in large part because of the dramatic decline in coal production. But the proposed DOGE cuts would have required MSHA inspectors to travel further to get to a mine. A review in March of publicly available data by the Appalachian Citizens' Law Centre indicates that nearly 17,000 health and safety inspections were conducted from the beginning of 2024 through February 2025 by staff at MSHA offices in the facilities on the chopping block. MSHA, which also oversees metal and nonmetal mines, was already understaffed. Over the past decade, it has seen a 27 per cent reduction in total staff, including 30 per cent of enforcement staff in general and 50 per cent of enforcement staff for coal mines, the law centre said. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
