Westray Coal Mine

2 Pages 408 Words

Jenny
March 03, 2003
Case Study: Westray – You Be The Judge

1) The stakeholders in the Westray mine were the residence of Pictou County, Westray Mining Corporation, Curragh Inc., and Nova Scotia Power. The operation of the mine would benefit each of the stakeholders. The residence of Pictou County, an economically depressed area, would receive over 200 jobs, a source of income and they would be able to work side by side with their family, friends and neighbours. Westray Mining Corporation and Curragh Inc. would produce a profit and Nova Scotia Power would receive 700 000 tonnes of coal annually for 15 years; the coal had a low sulphur content and would allow the utility to meet federal requirements concerning sulphur dioxide emissions without installing expensive scrubbing equipment.

2) Primarily, it was the provincial government, the general manager and the mine manager who were responsible for the safety of the Westray mine. The provincial government should have enforced safety regulations and the mine general manager should have stopped operations if safety precautions were not taken.

3) In the long-run, Curragh will have a reputation of disregarding the safety of its employees. People will see Curragh as a company who is only looking to maximize its profits, even at the cost of the lives of its workers. Furthermore, people will look down on the company because the president, Cliff Frame, made false promises to the families of the victims announcing that he would establish a trust fund for them. Also the president is known in the past to be associated with other mining industry failures.

4) After 1994, The Provincial Department of Labour laid 52 charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act and all were dropped. The RCMP laid charges of manslaughter and criminal negligence causing death against Curragh and two former mine managers, Gerald Phillips and Roger Parry. In June 1995, a Nova Scotia judge stayed the ch...