Find the Right Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) Training!

HSI's MSHA training online team created this useful infographic to help mine operators, new miners, experienced miners, mining contractors, and mine staff, easily identify and purchase the correct MSHA safety training.

The First Question You Must Answer is What Type of Mine are You Training For?

One of the barriers to mine safety training is that many new miners do not know which MSHA safety courses they must take to satisfy federal Mine Safety & Health Administration training requirements.

Mines and mine sites fall into two basic categories: surface mines and underground mines.

If you are expecting to work at a surface mine operation, the next question you must answer is what type of mine and what materials are being mined at that location?

Surface mines are split into two groups of mines:

• (a) Metals, non-metals, coal
• (b) Aggregates; minerals falls into each of those mine categories

Underground mines cover any site that is mining metals, non-metals, coal underneath the surface.

All surface aggregate miners are required to complete MSHA Part 46 training; new miners must take 24 hours of training (available online), while returning miners need 8 hours of refresher training annually.

All surface miners intended to work at metal, non-metal mineral, and surface coal mine operations, must take Part 48 MSHA training; new miners are required to take 24 hours of instructor-led training to obtain 5000-23 certification. Experienced or returning miners need 8 hours of Part 48 (subpart B) refresher training.

All underground mining requires Part 48 MSHA training; new miners need 40 hours of safety training, while experienced miners or returning miners need 8 hours of refresher training to maintain “competent person” designation.

If you have not had any MSHA training whatsoever, you are considered a new miner and must take MSHA training for Part 46 (aggregate mining), Part 48 Surface (metal, non-metal, and surface coal mining), or Part 48 Underground (metal, nonmetal, and coal mining). Note, Part 48 Underground training DOES cover Part 48 Surface requirements. If you need both surface and underground training, you will be covered under the 40-hour Underground course.

Download the Mine Type Infographic

MSHA Part 46 vs Part 48

Often times the confusion between MSHA Part 46 and Part 48 safety training requirements is due to uncertainty about the type of mineral, rock, metal, or metal alloy mined at specific mine sites or regions.

That’s understandable—there are many different types of aggregate mines and metal mines across the United States.

However, you’ll notice that many mine operations are uniquely specific to regions with large resource deposits or aggregates or metals.

This chart will help you clarify MSHA safety training needs based on mine activity type:

Mine Safety & Health Administration Training By Mine Type
MSHA Part 46	MSHA Part 48
Sand	Bauxite (aluminum ore)
Stone	Beryllium (Bertrandite)
Gravel	Boron (Borax)
Potash	Bromine Coal
Sandstone	Iron Ore
Slate	Copper
Shale	Nickle
Clay	Platinum
Flyash	Molybdenum
Shell	Lithium
Salt	Lead
Rock	Silver
Granite	Gold
Marble	Uranium
Traprock	Zinc
Cement	Steel
Feldspar	Cobalt
Phosphate	Titanium
Limestone	Gypsum
Basalt	Diamond
Barite	Slag
Kaolin	Pyrophyllite
Dolomite
Chalk
Cinder
Scoria
Quartzite
Garnet

What If I’ve Taken the New Miner Training Recently?

If you have taken mine safety training in the last 3 years, you will need to take a refresher course each year. To purchase refresher training, you’ll need to provide your documentation for completion of an MSHA New Miner training course.

MSHA Part 46 New Miner requires 24 hours of courses and costs $150; MSHA Part 46 Refresher requires 8 hours of training and costs $150 per miner.

MSHA Part 48 Surface New Miner requires 24 hours of training and costs $525 for a live online training experience; successful participants receive 5000-23 certification.

MSHA Part 48 Surface Refresher requires a minimum of 8 training hours or training annually and costs $210 per miner.

MSHA Part 48 Underground New Miner requires 40 hours of training and costs $675 for a live online training experience; successful participants receive 5000-23 certification.

MSHA Part 48 Underground Refresher requires a minimum of 8 training hours annually and costs $210 per miner.

To learn more, ask about group discounts, or schedule a course, contact HSI's MSHA specialists at 1-844-468-6742 or click the button to fill out the form!

Contact an MSHA Specialist