Despite President Trump's allusion to the contrary, a coal mine recently opened in Western Pennsylvania does not indicate a substantial increase in the number of coal miners employed in the state or the nation.
An investigation by NBC has shown that in the six months since Trump took the oath of office, only 800 coal mining jobs have been added across the USA.
The operators of the Acosta Deep Mine in Somerset County told the Associated Press that the mine, opened in May, will employ about 70 people and, eventually, perhaps 100.
During a speech last week kicking off what he called “Made in America Week,” the president referenced the newly opened mine before claiming that U.S. mining job numbers had increased by 45,000 over the course of his presidency.
“In Pennsylvania, two weeks ago they opened the mine — the first mine that was opened in decades. Opened a mine. And you know all the people that were saying the mining jobs? Well, we picked up 45,000 mining jobs in a very short period of time. And everybody was saying, ‘Well, you won't get any mining jobs.' We picked up 45,000 mining jobs,” Trump said.
“The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates there are roughly 50,800 coal mining jobs nationwide, 800 of which have been added since Trump took office. The six months before that, under President Barack Obama's administration, 1,300 coal jobs were added,” NBC reported following the president's comments.
Source: TribLife
