Coal supporters listened during the EPA hearing on mine permits held in Pikeville earlier this month. (Photo by Cordis Bishop)
Knott Countians are still struggling to deal with the grim news that surfaced last week – Arch Coal announced they would lay off 750 employees, 600 of those in Eastern Kentucky and around 250 in Knott County.
Late last Thursday, the company released the announcement that it would idle several operations and reduce production in others in Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia. The Knott County Complex and operation at Raven are among those to be closed.
Officials at Arch said about 75 positions at the Knott County Complex and more than 175 jobs at Raven will be lost – most in the next 60 days. Affected employees will remain on the payroll with full medical benefits for a minimum of 60 days. Some other employees, including about 45 at Knott County and Raven, will stay on for a longer period of time to complete the idling of the mine and reclamation before the positions are discontinued.
“We deeply value our people, and the decision to reduce personnel was made only after exhaustively reviewing other operations and exploring opportunities to avoid this measure,” Arch President and CEO John W. Eaves said in a statement. “We sincerely regret the impact the announcement will have on our employees and their families as well as on the local communities where we operate. This decision was difficult but necessary in order to weather the current downturn and to position the company for long-term success.”
The company reported a quarterly loss on May 1, and Arch’s share price has fallen this year as power companies chose natural gas to replace coal.
Knott Judge-Executive Randy Thompson said the layoff was “devastating news – for the employees and families affected, for the businesses who depend on that revenue, and also for county government.”
Judge Thompson said in the last two months, 60% of the county’s bills were paid from the LGEA fund, largely funded by coal and natural gas tax monies.
“We planned our next budget with $2.6 million in severance taxes, and we’ll be lucky to get $600,000,” Judge Thompson said. “It will affect not only our quarterly checks, but also things Rep. Short and Sen. Turner put in for us as line items, things like water lines and money for fire departments. We won’t know until we request those…
See this week’s newspaper for more.
Find the Troublesome Creek Times at local stores in Knott and surrounding counties or subscribe to the Times at (606)-785-5134