Coal Miner Whose Brother Died On The Job Was Fired After Flagging Dangers
In October of 2011, Jeromy Coots helped transport the lifeless body of his older brother out of the coal mine where they'd worked together in eastern Kentucky. Richard Coots, just 23 years old, had been crushed to death by a piece of mining machinery below ground.
Now, not even three years later, the younger Coots has been fired from his job at a different mine for flagging the sort of dangers that claimed his brother, according to Labor Department filings. He was let go in May after he complained in a company meeting that safety standards weren't being met inside the mine. He's 22 years old, with a wife and three kids.
"It's the Hobson's Choice that the miner is faced with," said Coots' lawyer, Tony Oppegard, who represents miners in safety cases. "Either you work in unsafe conditions, or you refuse and you get fired and you can't support your family."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/15/miner-jeromy-coots-fired-msha_n_5585568.html
Just a couple weeks ago, the state decided to
cut the number of mine safety inspectors.