The human factors of mineworker fatigue: An overview on prevalence, mitigation, and what's next.

BACKGROUND: Though mining remains a vital shiftwork industry for U.S. commerce, problems of continued prevalence of mineworker fatigue and its mitigation persist. Publications and reports on fatigue in mining appear to be rich and diverse, yet variable and remote, much like the industry itself. METHODS: The authors engaged in a brief nonexhaustive overview of the literature on sleep and fatigue among mineworking populations. RESULTS: This overview covers: potential sources of fatigue unique to mine work (e.g., monotonous and disengaging Work Tasks, underground environments and light exposure, remote work operations); evaluation of mitigation strategies for mineworker fatigue or working hours (e.g., shift-scheduling and training); and areas for future research and practice (e.g., fatigue risk management systems in mining, mineworker sleep and fatigue surveillance, lighting interventions, and automation). CONCLUSIONS: Fatigue continues to be a critical challenge for the mining industry. While research on the problems and solutions of mineworker fatigue has been limited to date, the future of fatigue research in mining can expand these findings by exploring the origins, nature, and outcomes of fatigue using advancements in lighting, automation, and fatigue risk management.

Patterns of Heat Strain Among a Sample of US Underground Miners.

OBJECTIVE: This study characterizes physiological measures of heat exposure among US underground miners. METHODS: Core body temperature measured by using ingestible sensors during subjects' normal work shifts was categorized into four temperature zones: less than 37.5 °C, 37.5 °C to less than 38 °C, 38 °C to less than 38.5 °C, and more than or equal to 38.5 °C. RESULTS: On average, subjects changed temperature zones 13.8 times per shift. Temperatures increased above the recommended limit of 38 °C nearly 5 times per shift for an average of 26 minutes each episode. CONCLUSIONS: Unlike previous heat stress research that reported only maximum and mean temperature measurements, this analysis demonstrates a dynamic pattern of physiologic heat strain, with core body temperatures changing frequently and exceeding the 38 °C limit multiple times per shift. Further research is needed on the impact of multiple short-term, intermittent heat exposures on miners.

Can Civility Norms Boost Positive Effects of Management Commitment to Safety?

We proposed that civility norms would strengthen relationships between management commitment to safety and workers' safety motivation, safety behaviors, and injuries. Survey data were obtained from working adults in hazardous jobs-those for which physical labor is required and/or a realistic possibility of physical injury is present (N = 290). Results showed that management commitment positively related to workers' safety motivation, safety participation, and safety compliance, and negatively related to minor injuries. Furthermore, management commitment to safety displayed a stronger positive relationship with safety motivation and safety participation, and a stronger negative relationship with minor worker injuries when civility norms were high (versus low). The results confirm existing known relationships between management commitment to safety and worker safety motivation and behavior; furthermore, civility norms facilitate the relationships between management commitment to safety and various outcomes important to worker safety. In order to promote an optimally safe working environment, managers should demonstrate a commitment to worker safety and promote positive norms for interpersonal treatment between workers in their units.