The training program must be approved by the Mine Safety and Health Administration. Aspiring miners will receive on-the-job training in the form of an apprenticeship—working with a licensed miner.
Apprenticeship requirements vary from state to state but often require a minimum of 40 hours of classroom training and six months of on-the-job training. Some states require up to one year of supervised training before you are eligible to become a miner.
Most positions also require prior training in first aid and emergency response. A general coal miner certification is often a requirement to work as a miner. Other certifications can give you valuable training while also increasing your competitiveness as a miner. Consider the following certifications:.
This certification is available through the Mine Safety and Health Administration and is a requirement to become a coal miner. To become certified, you will need to complete the Part 48 training program and then successfully pass the test. Ongoing education with requirements in safety training is also required to maintain your certification.
Individuals who study for, and successfully pass the exam for the MHSA instructor certification, are eligible to teach new miners the lessons they need to become certified miners. Instructors guide aspiring miners through the program-approved coursework and then assist them in studying for the General Coal Miner Certification exam.
There are a few hard and soft skills that are important to the success of a miner, including:. Problem-solving skills are crucial as a miner. The ability to identify a problem and take the necessary steps to overcome it is not only important for the job, but also for staying safe when completing underground projects.
Miners are often tasked with a project to evaluate and fix a problem, whether it is finding a way to a new underground area or choosing equipment that can collect the needed resources. Miners will often work in teams and must have strong teamwork skills. Teamwork is important for maintaining safety standards, solving problems and completing projects. Miners will learn to develop collaboration and interpersonal skills that help them succeed in the mining teamwork environment.
Developed communication skills are also important when working as a miner. Miners will communicate with team leaders and other team members to complete projects. Strong verbal and nonverbal communication skills are necessary for this role. Modern-day miners are beginning to rely on technology to assess land and determine the next steps.
Miners will need advanced technical skills to use industry-specific programs. Miners spend a lot of their workday outdoors or underground.
Miners can expect the following work environment characteristics:. He cited Colorado, where Gov. Unions and environmental activists coalesced around the creation of an Office of Just Transition in the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.
The language aims to mitigate the fear that clean energy and other jobs pay less than the fossil fuel industry. The law, the first of its kind in the United States, was called a potential road map by supporters for other coal-reliant communities in Appalachia, the Powder River Basin and Hopi-Navajo lands in Arizona.
New Mexico enacted similar legislation last year. Advocates in other states with clean energy goals, like Virginia, say they will push for similar legislation next session. Large environmental groups in recent years also have expanded their focus to include labor concerns. Other nonprofits and philanthropic organizations have formed to support displaced workers, such as the Equitable and Just National Climate Platform and the Just Transition Fund.
It cited unfavorable economic conditions and increased costs associated with environmental compliance as its reason for retiring the units in Dickerson, Md. Without a legislative plan to cushion the blow, upward of 63 people will lose their jobs, according to the company. But for others, the closure at Dickerson is a win, in particular for low-income people and communities of color, who are often disproportionately affected by power plant pollution. In the meantime, local groups like Appalachian Voices, with help from the Just Transition Fund, are working to clean up abandoned mine lands and use the space to create locally driven economic opportunities, such as building solar farms.
It seeks to invest in local efforts to help coal communities build resilience and low-carbon energy economies. Community-led efforts to pass legislation are an important step, but those laws must also be funded and enforced, according to Rebecca Newberry, the executive director of the Clean Air Coalition, which is working in the town of Tonawanda in upstate New York to support a shift from coal jobs to other employment.
Newberry teamed up with the local unions, teachers association and environmental groups after it became clear the coal-fired Huntley Generating Station would retire. The groups formed the Huntley Alliance and pushed the New York Legislature to create a transition fund for the town.
The fund was the first of its kind in the United States. They're dangerous and were banned in , but still exist in parts of the country. In two-foot high tunnels, workers dig for coal for hours without taking a break.
One miners' skin went hard and black because he lay for such long hours on his side digging for coal, the BBC reported. Others might move to try to find work at another coal mine. If miners are too old, or in bad physical condition, they could take it as an early retirement.
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It often indicates a user profile. Log out. US Markets Loading H M S In the news. James Pasley. In the US, coal mining is a shrinking industry. In , there were about , coal miners ; today there are about 53, Working in coal mines is dangerous — miners have to deal with toxic gases, plus the threat of being crushed, drowned, or injured from fires and explosions.
Some miners love it. It can be a family tradition, it's exciting, and the pay is usually pretty good. When a mine closes, miners would often rather work in another mine elsewhere than retrain. Curtis Burton, a year-old coal miner, who spent 17 years working in mines, told Business Insider what the job is like.
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Down in a coal mine, there's no such thing as a "nine to five. Inside a mine there's no natural light. Although Burton said with all of the technology, it's no longer as dark as once it was.
When Burton started mining 17 years ago, miners brought their own clothes — typically blue jeans, a T-shirt, a belt to hold a torch and tools, and heavy boots. Now miners wear clothing with reflective patches. Helmets protect the head, and torches light the way. In Poland's largest mine, Pniowek, before work begins miners cross themselves in front of Saint Barbara, the patron of miners Instead, they say, "God bless.
Burton seen here said in the US, it was mostly "old timers" who had their rituals. If the left boot goes on first, that's the way it'll carry on going.
Miners descend thousands of feet into the earth to get to the coal. Burton said getting underground was quick — it might take four minutes in an elevator. But it can take two hours, along miles of rail tracks, for miners to get to the working section of the mine.
They are paid for this time. Because mines go so deep, the air pressure can be enormous. And while ceilings can be bolted, it's not a foolproof technique. Burton said some mines have tried to cut costs by using cheaper roof bolts, but it's counter-productive, and unsafe. There are also deadly gases in the mines, like carbon monoxide and methane. Miners no longer take canaries down to test air quality, though. To get methane out, miners pump fresh air into the mine. Unfortunately, methane is unpredictable and can billow through the mine unexpectedly.
Coal mining is, and has been, a changing industry. Technology, like rock crushers and shovel swings, have replaced workers for years.
That's how employment managed to fall from , miners in to 53, in , while coal production still increased. Despite the technological advances, it's still exhausting work. Burton said quite a few tasks are repetitive and physical, like hanging power cables, and manually stacking crib blocks which provide support in the mines.
At the end of a long shift, miners need to rest. But they're strong. After the Crandall Canyon Mine disaster in , to find miners to interview, NPR journalist Scott Carrier said he looked for men with arms the width of his legs.
Piotr Grabon, a safety engineer who works with miners in Poland, said miners are typically "tough guys.
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