Coalnot in a slump

PINETOP, Oct 25, 2008 (The Lexington Herald-Leader - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- ICO | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- Misty Richardson spends nine hours a day following the path from a solitary light on her hard hat. When she emerges stiff and sore from the mouth of a coal mine, black dust is intertwined with her braided hair, caked under her neatly painted fingernails and streaked across her face.

Richardson, 31, is the only female miner at International Coal Group's Clean Energy Mine in Knott County.

It's hardly the job the single mother of two pictured for herself. Just last year she was teaching elementary school in Letcher County and working on a master's degree from Union College.

But with demand for coal high, along with prices, radio ads in Eastern Kentucky beckon workers to the mines, where they get good health insurance, above average wages and regular raises.

And coal miners' salaries have kept other sectors of the economy in Eastern Kentucky going that have been hard hit in other parts of the state -- like sales of cars and trucks and large equipment.

The 13 new miners hired in April with Richardson include a former truck driver, carpenter, and grocery and factory workers.

For Richardson, the career change means stability and financial peace of mind -- even as she works in an industry where 34 died last year.

"I can actually pay my bills on time now," Richardson said. "I can't describe to you that feeling. Before I would have to choose -- pay one bill this month and then try to catch up on the other next month."

The most Richardson made in her five years as a teacher was about $30,000 a year, she said. And because she wasn't tenured, she never knew if the school system would hire her for the next year.

"It was stressful," she said. "And with times getting tougher, I just couldn't do it anymore. I have kids to think about."

Richardson's starting salary at ICG was about $45,000 a year -- a wage hard to come by in rural Kentucky. Since then, she has received a pay raise and expects another in November.

She has been able to put money into a savings account for the first time and has plans to take a summer vacation with her 9-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son. When school picture time comes, she'll be able to afford the big package.

"That may sound silly, but I hate the look of disappointment on my kids' faces when I tell them we can't get something or do something because I don't have the money," she said.

Economic bright spot

The coal industry has long been considered the economic backbone of Eastern Kentucky.

Just as their fathers did, men stand next to their trucks in the early morning hours pumping gas, the fluorescent stripes on their pant legs identifying them as miners.

Stickers in support of mining cling to the backs of dusty windshields. School buses and cars share narrow roads with slow-moving 18 wheelers.

Nearly 80 percent of Kentucky's coal is loaded onto open railcars and exported to other states. Coal provides 49 percent of the electricity in the country, and 92 percent in Kentucky, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

Even though more young adults in the mountains are choosing college rather than mining, jobs with benefits are scarce for those who don't want to move.

Verlin Robinson, president of ICG operations in Knott County, says he has had dozens of people like Richardson come looking for a stable job. ICG, the leading producer of coal in northern and central Appalachia, has six underground mines in Knott County alone.

Other mining companies report similar trends.

In Perry County, three Hazard Police officers went to work for the coal industry.

Shawn White, a Hazard police officer for about five years, said he just wasn't making enough to make ends meet.

White, 30, is now working as a parts and services deliverer for James River Coal Company in Perry and Leslie counties. He made $15.25 an hour when he started, $5.75 more than he was getting at the police department.

Since, White has received two raises with James River, a rarity at the police department.

"I love law enforcement," White said. "If it wasn't for the pay I would be there. But I've got a wife and two kids, and we can't make it on that."

From factory to mine

Coal has done well because demand has remained steady. ICG has signed several long-term contracts with utility companies, which help ensure a steady source of income, Robinson said. "Ninety percent of the coal we produce is already sold for the next three or four years," he said.

The price of coal has also skyrocketed in recent years. In October 2005, companies in Central Appalachia were getting about $63 a ton. Today, it's $140 a ton.

Kentucky, the nation's third leading producer of coal, has extracted three percent more coal this year than at the same time last year, according to DOE.

Ryan Duff, vice president of Pine Branch Coal Sales Inc. in Chavies in Perry County, said many job applicants in the past year have been factory workers, some of whom have been laid off from factories suffering in the economic slump. "We definitely have had more applicants this year and have done quite a bit more hiring," Duff said. "Coal never really went anywhere, but it was forgotten about for a while -- people are remembering it again in these times."

The Eastern Kentucky economy hasn't been hit quite as hard as elsewhere because mining is flourishing, said Duff.

As an example, he points to car sales. While car lots across the country are going out of business in the sluggish economy, car lot owners in the mountains say they are doing well, mostly because of business from coal miners.

Bill Jones, with Clutts Auto Sales in Hazard, said car sales are down only slightly from last year. He said miners continue to purchase trucks and sport utility vehicles, even as buyers elsewhere are putting off purchases.

Duff said other businesses that depend on mining, such as trucking and equipment makers, are also strong.

"The mining industry in itself is such a big piece of the wheel that it pulls everything else up with it," Duff said.

Still, in Kentucky, miners are fewer than one percent of the work force. Even in heavily mined Knott and Floyd counties, mining employs less than 7 percent of the workforce, said Ken Troskie, a professor of economics at the University of Kentucky.

Richardson said she was turned away by two companies before ICG finally "gave me a chance."

More skilled workers

Even in areas where miners are needed, not just anyone can be a coal miner, industry officials say, and the process is competitive.

The days of blasting with dynamite and wielding picks are long over. Today, underground machines ply the coal seams with enormous computerized shears.

"To run some of the equipment, it takes a higher skill level than some people think," said Tony Osborne, human resource manager for ICG underground operations in Kentucky. "The miners are more like technicians today."

While safety has improved greatly, it's still also a dangerous job. There have been 25 mining deaths in the U.S. this year, five in Kentucky.

The fear of a massive roof fall or explosion, coupled with the cramped, dark atmosphere, drives many to quit after only a few days.

The work is hard and scary, Richardson said Thursday while wedging logs between the damp ground of the mine and the slate roof above. If the roof begins to cave, the logs bend and crack, acting as a warning system for miners.

The mountain above Richardson cracks loudly and murmurs. Rocks fall from nearby walls as the mountain bears down on the supports.

"I try not to think that there's a mountain sitting on top of me and it could come down at any time," she said. "I try to remember how lucky I am to have this job."

Reach Cassondra Kirby-Mullins at (606) 216-1520

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