Health Initiatives
Workplace safety and health are fundamental to our culture. Over the years we have developed many safeguards that have been vital to the continued well-being of our employees and we provide health and safety equipment to our people beyond that which is currently required by law. See below for just a few of the initiatives Alliance supports and encourages in the workplace.
Reducing Exposure to Respirable Dust
Alliance has been proactive in equipping our miners with the tools they need to make informed decisions to protect their health as they perform their job duties. One of the main tools in the fight against respirable dust is the Personal Dust Monitor (PDM), left. This device, manufactured by Thermo Scientific in association with both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, allows an employee to monitor his or her respirable-dust exposure in real-time. The PDM empowers our employees to make an informed decision about exposure to respirable dust and to take actions necessary to ensure a healthy exposure level.
Emergency Medical Technician Training
Alliance offers training and continuing education for Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) and Mine Emergency Technicians (METs) at all of our operations, depending on the laws in place. State laws in West Virginia and Illinois require mine sites to keep EMTs on staff, while the laws in Kentucky stipulate that there must be METs at each mine. Regulations vary slightly from state-to-state, but generally require that, on each shift, there is at least one certified emergency technician for every fifty employees. Alliance mines traditionally exceed this ratio by offering training -- often on-site -- to any employee who wishes to be certified as an EMT or MET. Each of our western Kentucky Operations have more than fifty METs!For information on additional Alliance health initiatives, click here.