Sources of Deep Coal Mine Productivity Change, 1962-1975

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to investigate the causes of labor productivity decline in bituminous deep mines during the 1970s. Prior to 1970, coal mining was a leading industry in productivity growth: average deep mine labor productivity increased from 5.8 tons per miner per shift in 1950 to 15.6 tons per miner per shift in 1969. Since 1969, average labor productivity has fallen every year to a 1977 level of 8.7 tons per miner per shift.

Panel data analysis of U.S. coal productivity

“…This paper discusses an econometric analysis of U.S. coal mining, and de¯nes interpretable sources of productivity growth consistent with concepts drawn from panel data analysis. 3 We employ a data set that is in some ways extremely rich and in other ways very limited. We observe the annual output and labor input of every coal mine in the United States from 1972-1995.…”

“…Here we do not explicitly separate out coal type relative to production (aside from regional origin and lignite, a particularly low quality coal ). 3 The importance of recognizing heterogeneity in coal mining dates back at least to the use of (British) regional data in Leser (1955) or (U.S.) state data in Madalla (1965). For work on productivity using aggregate data, see Jorgenson, Gollop and Fraumeni (1987), and Jorgenson (1990).…”

“…For work on productivity using aggregate data, see Jorgenson, Gollop and Fraumeni (1987), and Jorgenson (1990). For studies of data from states and individual mines, see Kruvant, Moody and Valentine (1982), Baker (1981), Byrnes, Fare and Grosskopf (1984) and Boyd (1987). Boyd (1987) gives a detailed analysis of Illinois strip mines, that documents substantial economies of scale.…”

06/00013 Panel data analysis of U.S. coal productivity

“…Here we do not explicitly separate out coal type relative to production (aside from regional origin and lignite, a particularly low quality coal ). 3 The importance of recognizing heterogeneity in coal mining dates back at least to the use of (British) regional data in Leser (1955) or (U.S.) state data in Madalla (1965). For work on productivity using aggregate data, see Jorgenson, Gollop and Fraumeni (1987), and Jorgenson (1990).…”

“…For work on productivity using aggregate data, see Jorgenson, Gollop and Fraumeni (1987), and Jorgenson (1990). For studies of data from states and individual mines, see Kruvant, Moody and Valentine (1982), Baker (1981), Byrnes, Fare and Grosskopf (1984) and Boyd (1987). Boyd (1987) gives a detailed analysis of Illinois strip mines, that documents substantial economies of scale.…”