As many Connecticut workers know, mining is a difficult and dangerous job. In addition to its inherent dangers, the profession presents additional factors that only add to the risk, including long, strenuous workdays and inexperience. A University of Illinois at Chicago study that looked at approximately 546,000 injury reports that were filed between 1983 and 2015 showed just how dangerous the profession could be due to these factors.

According to the study, approximately 9.6% of the miners worked shifts that were at least nine hours long on the day they suffered the injury. Miners whose shifts were a minimum of nine hours were 32% more likely to die in a work-related accident while 73% were more apt to be involved in an accident that resulted in injuries or death. According to the study, additional risk factors included lack of routine, less than two years' experience on the job and an irregular schedule.

The findings were particularly alarming as the profession has increasingly shifted towards the adoption of extended shifts and the hiring of contract workers. According to the authors of the study, industry leaders and policymakers should be concerned about the effects of the long shifts on employer fatigue and nutrition.

In professions that rely on manual labor, such as mining, suffering a back injury or another type of injury could prevent a person from being able to earn an income. Even though individuals are usually entitled to certain benefits if they become injured while on the job, actually obtaining them can be difficult. A workers' compensation attorney may help an injured worker navigate the legal process through which the benefits may be obtained. In certain cases, a lawyer may file a lawsuit on a client's behalf in the event that the employer denies the benefits.