The article provides an overview of the main classifications and concepts of human error and human factor in relation to the coal industry. The main issues have been identified, the solution of which will reduce the probability of erroneous actions of the working staff to 70-90%. According to the authors, at the present stage of the development of the coal industry in the Russian Federation, an important issue is the introduction to manning tables of specialists in the study of human factors (ergonomics).Patent analysis of promising systems for controlling harmful production factors based on personal protective equipment for employees has been conducted. The results of theoretical and practical studies in the field of labour protection for the organisation of transparent remote control of workers are presented. Technical solutions are proposed for combining a system for monitoring the use of personal protective equipment (respirator, glasses, headphones) and a protective helmet. The graphical results of an anonymous survey of workers of coal enterprises of the Russian Federation concerning safety and labour protection, as well as the practice of using personal protective equipment, are presented. The results of a survey of employees concerning their attitude towards expanding the functionality of traditional personal protective equipment are summed up.