Appalachia has witnessed the disappearance of 33,500 coal mining jobs
since 2011. And with cheaper, cleaner,
safer-to-extract natural gas being what it is those 33,500 jobs won’t be returning any time soon - if ever.
You’d think that retraining for alternate forms of employment is in order. Yet miners are resisting retraining without ready jobs from new sources. Donald Trump is going to make coal king again.
New employers are resistant to relocate to this blighted region without a trained workforce. The result? A classic chicken versus egg conundrum. A paradoxical situation from which one of the country’s poorest regions stands little chance of escape – a false hope for a coal resurgence and no clear path to recovery – much less prosperity. A catch-22.
You’d think that retraining for alternate forms of employment is in order. Yet miners are resisting retraining without ready jobs from new sources. Donald Trump is going to make coal king again.
New employers are resistant to relocate to this blighted region without a trained workforce. The result? A classic chicken versus egg conundrum. A paradoxical situation from which one of the country’s poorest regions stands little chance of escape – a false hope for a coal resurgence and no clear path to recovery – much less prosperity. A catch-22.
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