Labour conditions, traumatism, professional diseases of Siberian miners in the late 19th - early 20th centuries

Nowadays, when new labour relations are being formed intensively as the market economy is restored, it is important to turn attention to the history of labour in the capitalist Russia. The objective of this article is to determine the level of labour safety at mining enterprises in Siberia in the late 19th - early 20th centuries. On the basis of the official data from the Mining Inspectorate the article focuses on the labour conditions, traumatism and professional diseases of Siberian miners in the late 19th - early 20th centuries. The author argues that the Mining Inspectorate succeeded in giving account of traumatism and professional diseases, although it failed to make a substantial impact on the level of miners' labour safety and health. Mining was not accompanied even with the respect of the simplest safety rules, there was almost no protection of miners' labour. Mining equipment and constructions were substituted only if going totally deficient. At enterprises routine techniques, manual labour and backward forms of its organisation prevailed. The technical upheaval that had begun in the late 19th century was not accomplished in the first half of the 20th century. However, machines, while making workers' labour somewhat easier, became sources of increased danger. Labour conditions of Siberian miners were extremely dangerous because of the very specifics of the profession and weak mechanisation. It was especially true for coal miners. Entrepreneurs tried to save money on labour conditions and protection, multiplying threats for workers' life and health. Mining was supervised by employees most of whom had no special education and training. On average 35 out of 1000 workers per year employed in Siberian mining industry suffered traumas causing at least short term loss of work capacity. Taking into consideration the incomplete registration data, this figure should be increased at least threefold. Annually 5 to 10 workers out of 1000 suffered total or partial loss of work capacity, 1 out of 1000 died of traumas. Significantly higher was the percentage of miners who suffered because of the low culture of consumption, primitive living conditions, and imperfect system of medical help. Up to 13 out of 1000 workers died of diseases annually, without taking into consideration those who died of diseases after leaving mining regions. Especially dangerous were labour conditions in gold mining and coal mining, at salt-works and in metallurgy, the least dangerous were those in open-pit mines. On the whole the labour conditions of Siberian miners were typical for the period of early industrialisation and similar to those of all Russian miners.

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