Guest opinion: Loss of good jobs hits Montanans hard - billingsgazette.com: "Guest opinion: Loss of good jobs hits Montanans hard
By KEN TREIB
United Mine Workers
If you have lived in Montana for at least a year or so, chances are you know someone like Steve Boyer, a nine-year employee of Peabody Coal/ Big Sky Mine who was laid off when Big Sky closed its mine at Colstrip at the end of December. Steve and several of his fellow brothers and sister miners were forced to join the ranks of the unemployed, through no fault of their own. This has put a hardship on all the communities where these miners live as a result.

Getting back to work

Steve wants to get back to work. Despite the recent rosy news about the national economy, the fact is too many of us have been laid off or have seen friends and family bring home a pink slip because plants and mines are closing or moving overseas. And those of us who do get new jobs find that they are rarely as good as the ones we lost. Fewer manufacturing jobs mean less revenue for our schools, local business and the community. And we're not alone. The whole country has seen persistent layoffs, job losses and the resulting economic fallout for workers and our communities. "