Nov 8 Economy Portal 31: How A Closed Mine Opened New Prospects For One Coal Town Devin Mefford is sitting in the squat metal buggy of a modified mantrip, the train-like shuttle coal miners use to travel underground. Mefford is dressed for work, in a hardhat and a navy shirt and pants with lime green reflective stripes. It’s a uniform his father and grandfather — both Kentucky coal miners — would […] By Brittany Patterson Nov 8 Economy Portal 31: How A Closed Mine Opened New Prospects For One Coal Town Brittany Patterson
Nov 1 Economy Murray Energy’s Bankruptcy Could Bring Collapse Of Coal Miners’ Pensions The recent bankruptcy of Ohio Valley coal giant Murray Energy has renewed fears about the already shaky financial foundations of the pension plan that tens of thousands of miners and their families depend upon. The seismic collapse of yet another coal employer has lawmakers from the region renewing their push to fix the United Mine […] By Becca Schimmel Nov 1 Economy Murray Energy’s Bankruptcy Could Bring Collapse Of Coal Miners’ Pensions Becca Schimmel
Oct 13 Energy & Environment New Kentucky Memorial Honors Miners Who Died Of Black Lung Coal miners and family members of miners who have died from black lung disease gathered Sunday in Whitesburg, Kentucky, to dedicate a new memorial to miners who perished from the workplace disease. While Appalachian coal country has several memorials to mining disasters, this is believed to be the first memorial to remember the thousands of […] By Sydney Boles Oct 13 Energy & Environment New Kentucky Memorial Honors Miners Who Died Of Black Lung Sydney Boles
Oct 3 Economy Blackjewel Miners Likely to Receive Pay in DOL Deal The Department of Labor and a company associated with Blackjewel agreed this week to put nearly $5.75 million toward coal miners left unpaid in the company’s chaotic bankruptcy. The July 1 bankruptcy of one of the nation’s largest coal companies left 1,100 coal miners in Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia out of work and without […] By Sydney Boles Oct 3 Economy Blackjewel Miners Likely to Receive Pay in DOL Deal Sydney Boles
Sep 26 Economy Former Blackjewel Miners End Railroad Blockade In Kentucky The nearly two-month blockade of a Kentucky railroad track is coming to an end as unpaid coal miners end their protest in order to take new jobs, start classes, or move away from their coal-dependent communities. When coal company Blackjewel abruptly declared bankruptcy in July, it left some 1100 Appalachian coal miners in Kentucky, Virginia, […] By Sydney Boles Sep 26 Economy Former Blackjewel Miners End Railroad Blockade In Kentucky Sydney Boles
Sep 2 Energy & Environment On Labor Day, Miners Mark Historic Union March Ninety-eight years ago, thousands of pro-union miners marched toward West Virginia’s Logan County, to protest abuses by coal operators in what was then a largely anti-union territory. The marchers were met at Blair Mountain in Logan County by an army of men, fighting on behalf of anti-union mine guards and local law enforcement. The battle […] By Emily Allen Sep 2 Energy & Environment On Labor Day, Miners Mark Historic Union March Emily Allen
Aug 23 Economy Sanders Visits Coal States On Heels Of Climate Plan Release Vermont Senator and Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders will visit Kentucky Sunday just days after releasing his plan to address climate change. Sanders will speak in Louisville Sunday afternoon. His detailed climate plan released Thursday calls climate change “the single greatest challenge facing our country.” Like many of the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates, Sanders supports […] By Brittany Patterson and Sydney Boles Aug 23 Economy Sanders Visits Coal States On Heels Of Climate Plan Release Brittany Patterson and Sydney Boles
Aug 6 Economy Protesting Blackjewel Miners To Get Some Overdue Pay From Bankruptcy Sale More than a thousand coal miners left unpaid by the abrupt bankruptcy of Blackjewel mining could soon be getting some – but not all – of the money they are owed. Dozens of miners have staged a week-long protest on railroad tracks in Kentucky’s Harlan County, blocking delivery of a load of coal from a […] By Brittany Patterson and Sydney Boles Aug 6 Economy Protesting Blackjewel Miners To Get Some Overdue Pay From Bankruptcy Sale Brittany Patterson and Sydney Boles
Aug 5 Economy Few Answers For Unpaid Miners After Day One of Blackjewel Sales Hearing Blackjewel coal miners will have to wait at least another day to learn if the sale of the bankrupt coal company’s mines and equipment will deliver their overdue paychecks. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of West Virginia recessed Monday after an all-day hearing that yielded few results. The court is scheduled to […] By Brittany Patterson and Sydney Boles Aug 5 Economy Few Answers For Unpaid Miners After Day One of Blackjewel Sales Hearing Brittany Patterson and Sydney Boles
Aug 2 Economy Blackjewel Miners Continue Protest As Bankruptcy Hearing Looms Miners left unpaid by the bankrupt Blackjewel coal company say they are prepared to keep up their protest on railroad tracks in Harlan County, Kentucky, where they are blocking delivery of a load of coal. As their protest grows and gains attention, a bankruptcy court hearing on Monday could determine whether and when the miners […] By Brittany Patterson and Sydney Boles Aug 2 Economy Blackjewel Miners Continue Protest As Bankruptcy Hearing Looms Brittany Patterson and Sydney Boles