Commissioner Thomas Gentile says he has talked with OAE officials who blame the layoffs on the moderate summer, as fewer people used air conditioning along with the fact that industrial energy use in the area is down too.

Wheeling Pitt is no longer running its electric arc furnace or it's blast furnace in Mingo Junction so less power is being used there.

Commissioners say the news has a ripple impact. While the miners are non union workers, commissioners say contractors working at the mine are losing their jobs too.

The company issued this statement today but did not mention how many layoffs there would be.

Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act ("WARN Act") notices were given to employees of the Redbird West Mine of OhioAmerican Energy, Inc. ("OhioAmerican") today. These notices are provided when all or part of a work force is to be laid off for more than six (6) months after a sixty (60) day period.

Employees at OhioAmerican were told by management Monday morning that only some, and definitely not all, employees at the Redbird West Mine will be laid off. Those decisions have not yet all been made.

Management advised that it will meet with the employees on Friday, November 11, 2009, to further apprise them of the status of OhioAmerican's Redbird West Mine and its very valued employees. No layoffs will be made before November 14, 2009.