Miners Returning To Jobs

As part of a ruling from the National Labor Relations Board, 85 former workers at Horizon Natural Resources in Kanawha County will return to their jobs and receive back pay. The NLRB found Massey Energy and its subsidiary, Mammoth Coal Company, broke the law by refusing to hire those workers who had been part of the United Mine Workers of America when Horizon, formerly known as the Cannelton Mine, went bankrupt and Massey bought it in 2004. NLRB says that, at the time of the purchase, UMWA officials told Massey that 250 Horizon miners were willing to work, but officials with Mammoth went out of their way to avoid hiring those workers so it would be a non union site. Board members say the National Labor Relations Act states the buyer of a union company must recognize and bargain with the union if a majority of the buyer's new employees come from a former union site. With the ruling, the companies must also recognize the UMWA and bargain with the union, if requested.