Program to help out-of-work miners getting $7.5M

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) _ A program to help out-of-work miners in Eastern Kentucky is getting $7.5 million in federal funds.
The Lexington Herald-Leader (http://bit.ly/1kRR8HZ) reports the money from the U.S. Department of Labor will help the Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment Program continue an initiative called Hiring Our Miners Everyday, or H.O.M.E.

Coal companies in Eastern Kentucky have cut more than 7,000 jobs since early 2012, or nearly half the coal jobs in the region.

The H.O.M.E program provides job training and other services to laid-off miners and their spouses.

Program operators say nearly 2,000 people have enrolled in the initiative. Of those, about 900 have gotten new jobs and more than 600 are in job training.

“This new funding will allow us to continue to meet the workforce needs of our region’s unemployed miners in a time of unprecedented need,” said Jeff Whitehead, who oversees the initiative.

The Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment program provides services in 23 counties.