Mandatory training in safety and health in mining works: ITC 02.1.02 and its Technical Specifications

The mining industry is responsible for extracting naturally occurring minerals and rocks found in the earth’s crust. This activity can be carried out in the open, open air, or indoors, underground.

The mining sector has always been key in the history of humanity, let’s not forget that minerals and rocks provide us with everything we need to build what surrounds us, except what is made of fabric or wood. No one doubts the importance and necessity of the extractive industry, which has been the cause of countless wars and conflicts between countries to gain control of it.

Knowing that it is a strategic sector for the economy of each country, mining has always been characterized as arduous and dangerous work. Although working conditions have improved, in 2020, and although production has been reduced due to the global pandemic, the figures showed a total accident incidence rate (number of accidents per 100,000 workers) in the mining industry of 5,964[1],

Thanks to very demanding specific regulations and exhaustive health and safety training, the accident rate trend in the mining industry has decreased considerably over the last decade. One of the fundamental pillars, and responsible for this reduction, has been the obligation to receive job-specific training.

Law 31/1995 of 8 November on the prevention of occupational risks, which transposes Council Directive 89/391/EEC of 12 June 1989 on the application of measures to promote the improvement of the safety and health of workers work, was the starting point that culminated in the elaboration of ORDER ITC/1316/2008, of May 7, which approved the complementary technical instruction ITC 02.1.02 “Preventive training for the execution of work regulated by the General Regulation of Basic Mining Safety Standards (RGNBSM). This regulation establishes the obligation for companies to provide their workers with preventive training, whether they are their own workers or subcontractors.

As previously indicated, this Supplementary Technical Instruction, It is mandatory and is considered to allow the execution of the work. Thus, all workers who carry out their work on a regular basis, both in open pit and underground mines, must receive this specific training, which we explain below.

ITC 02.01.02 regulates the minimum training that workers and the different professional categories must receive, this being a minimum training of 20 hours, compulsory face-to-face, provided by technicians who must have specific academic or professional training in the mining sector, hold the diploma of Superior Technician in Occupational Risk Prevention and have professional experience in the sector of activity.

On the other hand, given the wide range of existing jobs within the mining industry, “mining safety training routes” have been established without leading to a complex dispersion, by subdividing the mining activity into groups, for each of which the ITC itself indicates the denominations resulting from the unification of the jobs that carry out similar tasks in the different mining sub-sectors, the groups are

5.1 Research.

1. Qualified technicians.
2. geophysical operators.
3. geochemical operators.
4. Other staff.

5.2 Outdoor Activities.

1. Qualified technicians.
2. Managers and/or caretakers.
3. Starting/loading/road machinery operators.
4. Drilling/Cutting/Shotblasting.
5. Drivers of transport vehicles.
6. Drilling and/or water search operators.
7. Oil or gas production operators.
8. Mechanical and/or electrical maintenance operators.

5.3 Indoor Activities.

1. Qualified technicians.
2. Managers and/or caretakers.
3. Start/load operators.
4. Drilling/mining.
5. transport operators.
6. preparation operators.
7. Mechanical and/or electrical maintenance operators.
8. General service operators.

5.4 Service Establishments.

1. Qualified technicians.
2. Managers and/or caretakers.
3. Crushing/classifying operators.
4. milling operators.
5. Stretch operators.
6. Separation and concentration operators.
7. kiln operators.
8. mixed operators.
9. Casting and/or sintering operators.
10. Building materials plant operators.
11. Operators of ornamental rock plants.
12. Laboratory operators.
13. Mechanical and/or electrical maintenance operators.

5.5 Common Positions.

1. Address.
2. Qualified technicians who do not participate in the production process.
3. Personal health.
4. Administrative and service staff other than maintenance.
5. Several.

The content of the different “Mining Safety Training Paths” must be adapted to the specific way in which the employer meets the preventive needs, therefore, they will be adapted to the specific situation of the position and the work center, according to the following structure :

1. Definition of work.

2. Specific prevention and protection techniques.

3rd Equipment, tools or auxiliary means.

4th Control and monitoring of the workplace and its environment.

5th Interference with other activities.

6th Regulations and Legislation.

This minimum content of the specific preventive training will be elaborated through “technical specifications” (ST), which will include at least the training program and its duration, the personnel concerned, the maximum mandatory frequency to receive the training and the maximum period for whereby the employer certifies that the workers concerned have complied with the provisions of the corresponding specifications. This program will be:

1. Definition of work (one hour).
2. Prevention and protection techniques specific to each trade (seven hours).
3. Work equipment, personal protective equipment or auxiliary means used in the workplace (seven hours).
4. Control and monitoring of the workplace and its environment (two hours).
5. Interference with other activities (two hours).
6. Regulations and legislation (one hour).

To date, 5 “technical specifications” have been published:

• ET 2000-1-08 Preventive training for the exercise of the position of operator of transport machinery, truck and tipper, in outdoor extractive activities.
• ET 2002-1-08 Preventive training for the exercise of the position of starting/loading/road machine operator in outdoor activities.
• ET 2002-1-08 Preventive training for the exercise of the positions of start-up/loading operator and drilling/blasting operator, in the interior extractive activities.
• ET 2003-1-10 Preventive training for the execution of the works included in groups 5.1 letters a), b), c) and 5.2 letters a), b), d), f) and h) of the Technical Instruction Complementary 02.1. 02 “Preventive training for work performance” Research and various outside activities.
• ET 2004-1-10 Preventive training for the execution of the tasks supervised in groups 5.4 letters a), b), c), d), e), f), g), h), j), k ), l) , m), and 5.5 letters a), b) and d) of section 5 of Additional Technical Instruction 02.1.02 “Preventive training in the exercise of the profession” Beneficiary Establishments and External Joint Posts.

It should be noted that in the event that the functions that a worker actually performs correspond to more than one job, the worker will receive only one training of the contents included in the program relating to each job that are common to all.

Finally, it should be remembered that the refresher or refresher training for these ETs will be adapted to a minimum of 5 face-to-face hours and will take place, depending on the training course, every 2 or 4 years since the first training received.

[1] MINING ACCIDENT REPORT 2020, Mining Safety Commission, revised version. December 2021. MINISTRY OF ECOLOGICAL TRANSITION AND DEMOGRAPHIC CHALLENGE.

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