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Throughout the world, the health and safety of mine workers is indisputably an ever present, ever changing and crucial issue within the mining industry. Mining IQ covers all aspects of mine safety and mine health topics, including zero harm approaches, mine rescue plans in the event of a mining disaster or mining accident, mine safety equipment, mining safety training and mine rescue training, and mining health issues.

Attitudes towards mine site health and fitness are changing. More and more we are alerted to the stresses, demands and temptations of the FIFO mining lifestyle. Mine workers are exhausted after a 12 hour day, consuming fast food, alcohol, and sugary drinks and are too tired to work out.

What has been the impact of this transitory lifestyle? Well – it has become clear that for mine workers some of the most dangerous health and safety risks are not located on or exclusive to the mine site itself.

Mining using equipment including mobile jaw crusher makes harsher physical demands on workers than most industries, making it easier for worker to fall into bad habits and unhealthy routines and this is exacerbated by the FIFO lifestyle which gives workers access to cheap alcohol, and readymade camp meals (often high in sugar or cholesterol). It’s hard to actually attribute responsibility for the problem to any one cause and, unfortunately, most current mine sites rely on the mine workers taking control of their own lifestyles and making good decisions after working a long and tiring shift.

Mining IQ recently started a discussion on LinkedIn asking members to comment on the programs that companies have put into place to mitigate this health risk and how successful they have been. We had an interesting response from the marketplace and wanted to share some of the insights with both our members and the wider mining audience. flotation machine:http://www.hxjqchina.com/product-list_49.html
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Companies like Rio Tinto have launched a health awareness program stating that they want their workers to make healthy behaviour part of their daily lifestyle. This would certainly be welcomed by mine workers who commented in the recent Mining IQ LinkedIn discussion that “I’d like to see the mining companies invest and spend more money with the catering companies to enable healthier options for us in the future”. Furthermore, contributors commented that “the mining companies really need to get more involved in what’s happening in their camps”.

However – it isn’t a one-way street.

Contributors to the discussion also admitted that they need to voice their concerns more actively and openly to really invoke change. And therein lies the problem – accountability for worker’s health falls largely on the decisions of the workers – however if the options available are not ‘healthy’ by and large then it becomes a perpetuating problem with no clear resolution. And if the worker’s aren’t speaking up – because they are too tired or have crashed from their latest fast food sugar rush – the problem will simply continue to simmer but maybe never reach the boil.