Coal bankruptcies and environmental clean-up
There have been a number of national articles and columns this week that focused on the clean-up costs related to recent coal company bankruptcies.
On Monday, The New York Times discussed the problem:
West Virginia faces perhaps the greatest fallout from the flood of coal bankruptcies that have hit the courts in the last year because many . . .
Updating labor stories
More on the right-to-work challenge and Alpha Natural Resources
As teachers frequently remind students: "Please do your own work"
Did the WV legislature, in their rush (it was SB 1) to prove how anti-union they were, fail to change ALEC's right-to-work model legislation enough to make it constitutional? In the previous post I noted the AFL-CIO's decision to challenge the legislation. An . . .
Covering/not covering Friday's Waynesburg rally that attracted 5,000 protesters against Alpha Natural Resources
Here is how three area papers covered Friday's scheduled solidarity march against Alpha Natural Resources in Waynesburg, PA. (Please see three posts down for the reason for the march - Alpha wants to break union contract.)
The Washington Observer-Reporter
Placement of story: front page with pictures
Headline: Thousands of miners rally . . .
"Fair and balanced" Intelligencer half-covers Alpha Natural Resources story
Edits out union response
Yesterday, I noted (see one post down) how Alpha Natural Resources was attempting to break its contract with the United Mine Workers after it gave significant bonuses to management. Today, the Intelligencer got around to publishing half of an AP story on Alpha on page 3 - buried right below the obituaries. However, the Intelligencer removed . . .
Alpha wants to break union contract
From yesterday's Wall Street Journal:
Alpha Natural Resources Inc. is asking a bankruptcy judge to let it slash retiree benefits and tear up existing labor agreements with its mine workers union, warning that its survival is at stake.
Two months ago, this same company gave $12 million in bonuses to company executives.
A spokesperson . . .
Posted in: umwaalpha natural resourcescoal
The war on coal miners continues
Here we go again
A bankrupt coal company wants to cut off benefits to its miners while at the same time giving huge bonuses to its executives. Doesn't this sound like what happened with Patriot Coal's bankruptcy last year? (I wrote about it here.) Yes, and that's exactly what's happening in the bankruptcy proceedings for Alpha . . .
Posted in: alpha natural resourceswar on coalcoal
Keeping us semi-informed on coal issues
The Friday Intelligencer
Issues that were covered:
Murray vs. the EPA
The morning Intelligencer featured a ruling by a U.S. district judge that requires EPA administrator Gina McCarthy to give a deposition in a suit filed by Murray Energy. The Intelligencer devoted much more coverage to the decision than any other source that I could find -- especially the AP report. . . .
Posted in: blood on the mountainjim justicealpha natural resourcesumwahillary clintonjeff kesslerepamurray energy