Another Blackjewel? Dozens of KY miners didn’t get their last paycheck after layoff.
Employees of Perry County Coal, who were laid off last month, report they have not received their final paycheck or payment for unused vacation days, putting the miners in a strikingly similar position to former employees of Blackjewel LLC, who protested in Harlan County last year over unpaid wages.
David Mullins, former general manager of Perry County Coal, told the Herald-Leader on Monday that about 75 employees did not receive their final paychecks, and that the remaining maintenance crew of 24 workers and security guards have not been paid since mid-December.
Perry County Coal’s workforce of nearly 300 miners quickly deteriorated to a skeleton crew after American Resources Corporation purchased it in September. The company was previously owned by Cambrian Coal, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last year and sold nearly all of its assets in Eastern Kentucky.
Recent court filings showed that American Resources Corporation is blocked from acquiring new permits by federal regulators. Records from the U.S. Department of the Interior show the company has 36 outstanding violations in Kentucky.
Mullins said American Resources Corporation struggled to maintain the company from the moment it purchased the Perry County mines. The company failed to pay workers’ compensation insurance on two occasions, forcing employees to go home until the company paid its premiums.
Many employees were never given health insurance after American Resources Corporation took over, and the company issued multiple rounds of layoffs before the final round last month, Mullins said.
In addition, electricity at two mines could be shut off within a week due to non-payment of electric bills, possibly jeopardizing the ability to reopen the mines, he said.
“I don’t know why the judge let them have it,” Mullins said of the bankruptcy court. “They were never in a position, financially and permit-wise, to be able to take that company.”
An attorney for American Resources Corporation did not respond to a request for comment, and a call to the company’s corporate office went unanswered.
The lack of payment is strikingly similar to the bankruptcy of Blackjewel LLC., which laid off hundreds of Kentucky miners last year and failed to pay out its final paychecks for months. Several of those miners staged a protest in Harlan County and blocked a railroad track that was used to haul coal from one of the company’s mines.
Blackjewel’s employees were eventually paid for their past work, but several miners said the checks did not cover the late fees they incurred during the months they went without pay.
Bobby Stevens, a former Blackjewel miner who also worked for Perry County Coal, said he is concerned the Blackjewel case set a precedent for coal companies to avoid paying workers during bankruptcy proceedings.
“I believe these companies are going to keep on doing that until somebody steps forward,” Stevens said.
Thor Campbell, a foreman for Perry County Coal, said he has received donations from two churches he attends to help pay bills since he was laid off last month. Campbell said he is concerned Perry County Coal may be able to avoid paying workers for months, just as Blackjewel did last year.
“They ought to have respect for every man to pay us what they owe us,” Campbell said. “If it wasn’t for the two local churches donating money for me and my family, and some of the members of the church donating money, I would not have money to feed my family.”
The Herald-Leader reported in August that not a single coal company formed in Kentucky within the past five years had posted a bond required by state law to protect miners’ wages if the company suddenly shuts down.
This story was originally published January 6, 2020 at 5:45 PM.