CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - A state economic group has calculated that 5,000 jobs have been lost in West Virginia since 2011, most of them in the state’s southern coalfields.
The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy on Tuesday released its annual report, “The State of Working West Virginia.”
The report focuses on the lingering effects of the recession and the steady erosion of coal mining jobs in southern West Virginia, among other factors. West Virginia coal production has declined by 35 percent since 1997, according to the report.
The report offers a number of policy recommendations to increase workforce participation, and take advantage of the natural gas boom in the northern part of the state.
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Online:
West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy: www.wvpolicy.org
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