Technical and Social Determinants of Productivity Growth in Bituminous Coal Mining, 1955-1980

The severe productivity slowdown in coal mining in the 1970s has been widely attributed to the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act. However, other variables also warrant attention. Increasing unrest in the coal fields and challenges to both the Mine workers Union and coal operators also characterized the period. In particular, strikes over working conditions skyrocketed. New pollution controls and the oil crisis caused structural shifts in the demand for coal, impinging on productivity. This econometric study documents the salience of social determinants of the productivity slowdown controlling for these factors; the conclusion explores implications for how to conceptualize productivity.