The past few months, COVID-19 has taken its toll on employment in the Powder River Basin. Weak market conditions have struck again with a new round of furloughs at the Decker Coal Mine just north of the Wyoming border in Montana.
Friday, May 8, Decker Coal Company furloughed 98 workers until May 26, pointing to impacts from COVID-19. That's a nearly 60 percent decrease in the mine's workforce, according to the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration. Many Wyoming residents travel daily to work at the mine.
In a statement, the Decker Coal Company said there are no health-related issues at the mine and hope workers can return at the end of the month.
"We are sorry for our dedicated workers, their families and the community who are directly affected. We look forward to resuming contracted deliveries as soon as possible," said Leonard Wolff, General Manager at Decker Coal Company.
The Powder River Basin has previously seen a string of lay-offs at coal mines. With action from Peabody, NTEC, and Kiewit, mine lay-offs sit at about 420 workers. Last week, the railroad operator BNSF Railway announced 130 layoffs at two Wyoming facilities connected to a decline in coal demand.
Have a question about this story? Contact the reporter, Cooper McKim, at cmckim5@uwyo.edu.
