BY ALYSON KENNEDY
FARMERSVILLE, Illinois - The 350 members of United Mine
Workers of America (UMWA) Locals 12, 1969, and 2488 have
entered the third month of their determined strike against
Freeman United Coal Mining Co. The strike began on September 11
at 12:01 a.m., after the company refused to back down on
contract proposals that would gut health benefits for retired
miners.
During a recent visit to the picket line, strikers from UMWA Local 12 at Crown No. 3 exchanged experiences with Jim Spaul, a rail worker from Britain who was a member of the National Union of Mineworkers during the fight against mine closures there in the 1980s. UMWA members told Spaul that after the Freeman mines opened in 1981, they shut down Crown No. 3 in 1982 for three years. In 1987 they closed it again. After the union agreed to concessions, the company reopened Crown 3 in 1991.
Ron Grabow, a member of UMWA Local 12, said, "In 1991 numerous top jobs were contracted out. We have done nothing but give since the mine started, and it has got to be stopped somewhere."
Mike Delost, a laid-off member of UMWA Local 1148, was also at the picket line that day. He had taken the day off from his current job at Granite City Steel near St. Louis, Missouri, to come up and join the strikers. "I came up to show support and find out what the issues are. Our local is planning a gate collection and recently had strikers speak." Delost worked for 17 years at a preparation plant owned by Peabody Coal and was the vice president of the local. After a 1993 strike there he was laid off.
Delost informed the strikers that 66 workers at the power plant of the Anheuser-Busch brewery in St. Louis had walked off their jobs that morning. Teamsters struck for two days when the company began imposing its "final offer" concessionary contract, which had been rejected twice by workers. The power plant uses coal purchased from Freeman. A flyer has been circulated in the brewery informing workers about this.
Freeman, which is owned by General Dynamics, sent a letter to the striking UMWA members on October 27. The letter, signed by company president Walt Gregory, said Freeman has proposed a "new agreement that would help our company be competitive and continue to provide hundreds of good jobs."
The letter claims that Freeman United has proposed a "new, improved company pension program," adding, "I sincerely hope a new agreement can be reached soon. If this happens, our employees can return to work and we can continue to face the many challenges of the coal industry together." Similar letters were sent to local papers throughout the area.
The next day negotiations between the UMWA and Freeman came to a standstill when the union rejected a proposal that would drastically limit seniority rights. Freeman's latest proposal cuts the seniority rights in job bidding and recall from layoffs.
When the union rejected the proposal, Freeman representatives walked out of the negotiations, threatening to sell the mines. The company also threatened to bring in scabs.
A press release issued by the UMWA October 30 read: "UMWA international vice president Jerry Jones commented that although the union seriously considered the company's health- care proposal, it was `too much' when Freeman conditioned any settlement with forfeiting employee's seniority." Further negotiations have not been scheduled.
The strike against Freeman remains solid. The striking locals have set up the Illinois Miners Relief Fund. The fund has an office set up in the Farmersville UMWA strike headquarters where applications are taken from strikers who need help with utility, rent, and mortgage payments.
The auxiliary has set up a kitchen where meals are made for strikers who come to the headquarters for picket duty and other work. They have organized a food pantry for strikers' families, and are already planning a Christmas party for December.
Donations to the strike fund help purchase food for the pantry. Union locals in the area are also organizing food collections, including the UMWA local at the Monterrey mine in Carlinville, Illinois.
For information on the strike, to request a speaker from the striking miners, or to offer support, contact the UMWA Strike Headquarters, P.O. Box 107, Farmersville, Illinois 65233 or call (217) 227-3233.
Alyson Kennedy is a member of the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers.