Vol. 71/No. 16      April 23, 2007

The UMWA contract at the mine expired March 31. Workers did not agree to the bosses' demand to cut wages—in violation of the national coal contract the union has signed with the Bituminous Coal Operators Association (BCOA)—and walked out April 4. Miners at two underground Foundation mines in Pennsylvania simultaneously struck to demand the bosses honor the BCOA contract at all three locations.

The 2007 national coal pact includes a 20 percent wage raise and pension increases for future retirees.

A few hours after the strike started, Foundation said it would close the Illinois mine, claiming it is not profitable.

National and local officers of the union were among those on the platform here. UMWA president Cecil Roberts, the main speaker, said the company “lied to the workers and their families in Wabash. They took $30,000 from each of us.”

In 2002 Wabash workers agreed to concessions, amounting to $30,000 per miner over five years, after the bosses promised to invest more, such as for building a new entrance.

UMWA communications director Phil Smith said Foundation "lost money at this mine, but the company as a whole has shown millions of profits.” The company employs 3,000 workers in 14 mines. It reported $1.47 billion in revenues last year and $31 million in profits.

“There is 20 to 30 years of coal left in this mine,” said Brenda Howard, referring to Wabash. One of four women miners there, Howard operated a shuttle car hauling coal out of the mine, and worked at Foundation for 27 years. She and other strikers said the bosses want to claim bankruptcy, close the mine, and reopen it nonunion.

On the picket lines in Keensburg, miners were eager to explain why they walked out. “We gave back money, health-care benefits, and some overtime pay,” said Rick Ott, a diesel truck mechanic, referring to the 2002 cuts.

Kevin Hess, a roof bolter, has been mining for 38 years, 21 of them at Wabash. “This time we won't take more concessions,” he said. “Most mines around here are nonunion, where workers make more money, and some get benefits. But they are riding on what we get.”
 
 
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