An investigation and litigation by the U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $175,000 in back wages from a Charleston-based coal mining company that laid off 44 miners in Mingo County, West Virginia, and denied them a final paycheck while filing for bankruptcy. The agency announced Tuesday its investigation showed Ben’s Creek Operations WV LLC, which had operations in Matewan, West Virginia, informed the affected workers of the layoff on April 9, 2024, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy five days later and then failed to issue the miners their last paycheck as required on April 19 for two weeks of work from March 31 to April 13, 2024.