Recently, a small group of state senators dealt a big blow to West Virginia coal miners.

Senators Don Caruth, Clark Barnes, Frank Deem, Mike Hall, Ron Stollings, Joe Minard, Erik Wells and John Yoder killed a bill pending before their legislative committee that would have better protected West Virginia coal miners who would like to speak up about unsafe work conditions.

Remarkably, these senators seem to believe that current West Virginia law provides coal miners with enough protection from the powerful coal operators for whom they work. These senators made up the majority vote when the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to kill SB166.

Anyone with any experience with West Virginia's coal industry knows that miners who speak up about workplace safety have a legitimate fear of retaliation from many mine operators. It's an unspoken understanding among coal miners that you'd best keep your head down if you see health and safety problems. If you rock the boat about these things, it makes the operators angry. You risk getting put on the worst jobs on the worst shifts until they drive you from the workforce. You risk trumped-up charges of insubordination, followed by unwarranted discipline. You risk getting fired outright. You risk getting labeled as a "troublemaker" and being blacklisted from working at other mines.

The coal mine tragedies of recent years show that we have a long way to go if coal mining is to be a safe occupation. Coal miners can play a key role in making sure that the mines are safe, and they should be protected when they speak up about problems. After all, miners know their workplace better than anyone, and have every reason to want to make it safe and healthy. Plus, government mine inspectors can't be everywhere at once, so miners can serve as watchdogs when problems arise.

At the federal level, miners who are retaliated against can file a complaint with mine safety regulators and be made whole again. There is a similar system at the state level, but miners rarely use it because the process is so weak. Senate Bill 166 would have leveled the playing field for West Virginia coal miners here by making the state system comparable to the federal one.

For instance, miners would have had 60 days to file their complaint, rather than 30 days. They would have had the right to temporary reinstatement while a case proceeds, so long as the complaint is not frivolous. They would have received interest on a back-pay award, just like the federal system allows. Miners who leave one job and apply for another would have been protected from blacklisting. Miners who refuse to perform unsafe work would have been protected. Plus, miners probably could resolve their claims more quickly in the state system than in the federal system.

The state doesn't have to regulate coal mine safety at all. We could leave all of it to federal regulators, but fortunately we don't. The families of the victims of last summer's Crandall Canyon disaster in Utah probably wish that their state government had given miners another layer of protection. Utah didn't regulate mine safety at all.

Years ago, when the West Virginia Legislature first set up a system to resolve these issues, it surely envisioned a process that wasn't stacked against miners. Yet time has shown that West Virginia's system is broken, to the coal operators' benefit. This bill would have made the system fair.

But a majority of the Senate Judiciary Committee figured that miners don't deserve a system that actually protects them. Chalk up another victory for King Coal.

Fetty is a lawyer who focuses on coal mine health and safety issues with the Appalachian Center for the Economy and the Environment in Buckhannon.

Recently, a small group of state senators dealt a big blow to West Virginia coal miners.

Senators Don Caruth, Clark Barnes, Frank Deem, Mike Hall, Ron Stollings, Joe Minard, Erik Wells and John Yoder killed a bill pending before their legislative committee that would have better protected West Virginia coal miners who would like to speak up about unsafe work conditions.

Remarkably, these senators seem to believe that current West Virginia law provides coal miners with enough protection from the powerful coal operators for whom they work. These senators made up the majority vote when the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to kill SB166.

Anyone with any experience with West Virginia's coal industry knows that miners who speak up about workplace safety have a legitimate fear of retaliation from many mine operators. It's an unspoken understanding among coal miners that you'd best keep your head down if you see health and safety problems. If you rock the boat about these things, it makes the operators angry. You risk getting put on the worst jobs on the worst shifts until they drive you from the workforce. You risk trumped-up charges of insubordination, followed by unwarranted discipline. You risk getting fired outright. You risk getting labeled as a "troublemaker" and being blacklisted from working at other mines.

The coal mine tragedies of recent years show that we have a long way to go if coal mining is to be a safe occupation. Coal miners can play a key role in making sure that the mines are safe, and they should be protected when they speak up about problems. After all, miners know their workplace better than anyone, and have every reason to want to make it safe and healthy. Plus, government mine inspectors can't be everywhere at once, so miners can serve as watchdogs when problems arise.

At the federal level, miners who are retaliated against can file a complaint with mine safety regulators and be made whole again. There is a similar system at the state level, but miners rarely use it because the process is so weak. Senate Bill 166 would have leveled the playing field for West Virginia coal miners here by making the state system comparable to the federal one.

For instance, miners would have had 60 days to file their complaint, rather than 30 days. They would have had the right to temporary reinstatement while a case proceeds, so long as the complaint is not frivolous. They would have received interest on a back-pay award, just like the federal system allows. Miners who leave one job and apply for another would have been protected from blacklisting. Miners who refuse to perform unsafe work would have been protected. Plus, miners probably could resolve their claims more quickly in the state system than in the federal system.

The state doesn't have to regulate coal mine safety at all. We could leave all of it to federal regulators, but fortunately we don't. The families of the victims of last summer's Crandall Canyon disaster in Utah probably wish that their state government had given miners another layer of protection. Utah didn't regulate mine safety at all.

Years ago, when the West Virginia Legislature first set up a system to resolve these issues, it surely envisioned a process that wasn't stacked against miners. Yet time has shown that West Virginia's system is broken, to the coal operators' benefit. This bill would have made the system fair.

But a majority of the Senate Judiciary Committee figured that miners don't deserve a system that actually protects them. Chalk up another victory for King Coal.

Fetty is a lawyer who focuses on coal mine health and safety issues with the Appalachian Center for the Economy and the Environment in Buckhannon.