AP 3-31-,2016
Some 465 coal mine workers in northeast Wyoming are being laid off.
The Gillette News Record reports (http://bit.ly/1UESLw2 ) that Peabody Energy is laying off about 235 employees at its North Antelope Rochelle mine.
And the Casper Star-Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/1qllIQs ) that Arch Coal announced Thursday it is laying off 230 workers at its Black Thunder mine.
The companies been hit with lower prices and decreased demand for coal.
Both mines are located in the coal rich Powder River Basin in Campbell County and each employs more than 1,000 workers. Together, they produce about 200 million tons of coal a year.
The layoffs represent about 15 percent of their workforces at the mines.
The downturn in the energy extraction industry also has prompted layoffs among oil and natural gas operators in Wyoming.
