Message from Chris Williamson, Asst Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health
I am honored to serve alongside Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, Deputy Secretary Julie Su, Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health Doug Parker, and the Department’s dedicated team of worker safety and health professionals. All of us share a deep commitment to protecting the safety and health of our nation’s workers.
On Workers Memorial Day, we come together to remember those workers we have lost and honor their memory by recommitting our efforts to prevent future workplace tragedies.
I was born and raised in a mining community in southern West Virginia. My family worked in underground and surface coal mines, operated heavy equipment and trucks, and worked in factories, sawmills, and construction—all workplaces that require great vigilance, communication between workers, and making safety a priority. Many of my childhood friends are miners today. I know firsthand the positive economic impact that the mining industry brings to many communities like the one where I grew up. Sadly, I also know what can happen when mines are not operated safely, and miners are unnecessarily exposed to occupational hazards that can cause irreversible health problems, pain and suffering, and death.
When Congress passed the Mine Act and created MSHA it communicated with the force and effect of law the Agency's primary mission—that "the priority and concern of all in the coal or other mining industry must be the health and safety of its most precious resource—the miner." That clear instruction and principle are what guide our Agency and its employees.
Since the Mine Act became law in 1977, the mining industry has changed and evolved. So too has MSHA. With the work of our Agency’s programs and its mandatory safety and health standards, the development of new technologies by public and private entities, and the joint efforts of government, labor, and the industry, mines are now safer and healthier by practically every historical metric.
However, given expected demand increases in both the coal and metal and nonmetal sectors, we all must renew our commitment to keeping miners safe and healthy. In other words, we have a lot of work to do, and I stand committed to making sure that it gets done.
To better protect miners, we are working to increase the number of MSHA employees on the ground and ensure operators follow safety and health regulations.
We are improving and developing new ways to communicate important safety and health information with miners more quickly and directly.
We are informing miners about their rights and protecting them against retaliation if they choose to exercise those rights in the workplace.
On this somber day that we remember the miners and workers we have lost, all of us—labor, industry, and government—must work together toward our shared goal of protecting workers’ safety and health. At MSHA, we remain committed to our statutory mission and ensure that those who choose the important mining profession can go to work and return home to their families and communities safe and healthy at the end of each shift.
I am proud to stand today with this strong leadership and represent the Mine Safety and Health Administration as we remember those workers we have lost and honor their memory by continuing the never-ending work of making workplaces safer.