MOSCOW, May 29 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s parliament has ratified the international Safety and Health in Mines Convention of 1995, the Federation Council said on Wednesday.
The convention sets guidelines for employees in the mining sector, including measures aimed at reducing work-related illnesses and preventing accidents.
According to the Federation Council, the convention is in accordance with existing Russian mining regulating legislation.
Passed by the International Labor Organization in 1995 and enforced three years later, the convention has been already ratified by 26 countries besides Russia, including Germany, Poland, South Africa and the United States.
Mine safety conditions in Russia have often been a cause for concern. In 2010, a total of 91 workers died in twin methane gas explosions at a mine owned by the Raspadskaya company in the Kemerovo Region.
Earlier this year a gas blast at the Vorkutinskaya coalmine in Russia’s northern republic of Komi in February killed 18 miners, while four other miners died in a flood at a Kemerovo Region mine in March.