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Like many experienced workers, remote control continuous miner operators perform their everyday jobs making choices and decisions that they may not consciously think about. While performing tasks, they are continuously processing feedback and cues which guide them for the next move. Initial training teaches the operators the tasks necessary to operate the equipment and perform the job. However, with experience they are better able to deal with hazardous conditions and non routine situations. To better understand what potential cues and feedback help to guide the operators, a questionnaire was developed to learn what factors affect decisions. Operator responses address issues related to specific tasks, equipment operation, visibility, lighting, and communication issues. The information collected is useful to understand what cues experienced operators use to make task performance decisions. Results will be used to develop interventions and training for safe and effective operator performance.

NIOSH researchers have been examining underground coal mining activities in order to evaluate work crew hazards. In 1994 a continuous mining machine operator was killed by falling roof during extended cut mining. Many aspects of the incident were used by NIOSH researchers to develop a scenario interview. The goal was to provide a realistic framework for acquiring frank and detailed insights. The interview consists of two sections. The first describes the underground mining conditions. The second recounts the fatal incident. Each section is supplemented by a diagram and a set of questions addressing relevant safety issues. The interview was administered at three mines that actively take extended cuts. Researchers found the scenario approach to be an effective interview tool as well as an effective hazard awareness and safe work practices training platform.

Coal miners often handle heavy electrical power cables, weighing up to 10 kg per meter. These cables are manually lifted and attached to the mine roof to prevent damage from mobile underground equipment. Data suggest that workers who commonly perform cable-handling tasks experience a high rate of lost-time back injuries. In this study, six male underground miners performed a total of 12 cable-hanging tasks in standing, stooping, and kneeling postures, during which kinematic and ground reaction force data were collected. Reductions in vertical workspace were found to result in a linear increase in the peak moment experienced by the lumbar spine p < 0.05). In restricted postures, peak moments were not significantly different in stooping vs. kneeling postures (p > 0.05). Average lumbopelvic flexion during the tasks was highest in stooping conditions, followed by standing and kneeling exertions (p < 0.05). Implications of this data with respect to design of cable handling tasks are presented and discussed.