Patriot Coal Corp. today will seek court permission to slash health care and pension benefits for about 13,000 union workers, an issue that has set off weeks of street protests by affected workers, Reuters reported today. The company, which declared bankruptcy last year, said that it wants to save $150 million a year on its labor obligations to help it regain profitability. But the United Mine Workers of America, the nation's biggest coal miners' union, says the cuts are unfair and plans to protest outside the bankruptcy court hearing today.
