Gaining Strength for Our Future

Editor’s Note:

Keeping the UMWA’s history alive and relevant is a critical part of the union’s service to its members. If we do not know our history, then the harsh realities we overcame in the past cannot serve to guide us today. That is why we remember events like UMWA President Emeritus Richard Trumka elected to AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer, President Roberts being sworn into office as the 15th UMWA International President, the 1993 and 1998 negotiations with the National Bituminous Wage Operators and the union vowing to organize and grow our membership in 2003.

Telling the brave stories of the men, women and leaders who built our union is not just an exercise in research, it is an opportunity for us to learn how battles were won and what it takes to win them again. This is the third installment of the UMW Journal’s series, Project 50: Struggle and Win.

Demanding Jobs With A Future

Richard Trumka, Cecil Roberts and Jerry Jones were elected on November 10,1992 and vowed to turn up the heat on negotiations with the National Bituminous Wage Operators in early ’93. Trumka called it “the fight of our lives” with the 12 companies represented by the BCOA.

By May 1, 1993, tension was building throughout coalfield communities. The BCOA contract extension was set to expire on May 3 and no agreement was in sight. More than 3,500 UMWA members, labor leaders and supporters from the national Jobs with Justice conference in Pittsburgh rallied outside Consol headquarters. A clear message was sent to the coal operators: We gave you our sweat, we gave you our muscles, we gave you our blood and our lives. Now it’s time to do your part. It’s time for job security, job opportunities, and it’s time for jobs with a future.

With the BCOA still refusing to negotiate a fair contract, the UMWA announced it would call strikes at selected operations of the Ziegler Holding Company, Arch Mineral Corporation and Amax Coal Industries, Inc. The union charged the companies with unfair labor practices. A week later the strike was expanded to include Ashland Coal Operations in West Virginia, adding more than 2,000 additional UMWA members to the strike.

Six days later, the union called on 2,200 UMWA members to strike Pennsylvania and West Virginia mines owned by Consol Energy, Inc, Rochester & Pittsburgh Coal Company and the C.L.I. Corporation. “We’re in for a long and bitter struggle that could dwarf the Massey or Pittston strikes,” said then Vice President Roberts. “We will do whatever is necessary to achieve a fair and just agreement with the BCOA member companies.”

By June, more than 14,000 UMWA members in seven states were on strike. AMAX, Inc. announced that it had withdrawn from the BCOA to merge with Cyprus Minerals Inc., forming the nation’s second largest coal producer. Negotiations with the newly combined firm with 2,300 UMWA members were now in progress.

CLI Inc, a small company based in Pittsburgh, announced it had also withdrawn from the BCOA to sign an interim agreement with the UMWA. “By now, it should be clear to the BCOA that the UMWA is prepared to do whatever is necessary to come to the bargaining table as equals and negotiate a fair contract that guarantees job security for the most productive mine workers on earth. We have earned those jobs with the profits that we have made for the BCOA companies,” Roberts said.

In September, Labor Secretary Robert Reich appointed William Usery to mediate between the UMWA and member companies of the BCOA, raising hopes throughout the coalfields that the selective strikes would end, and a fair agreement could be negotiated. That did not happen, and Usery formally suspended negotiations on October 22.

After selective strikes and more than a year of bitter contract negotiations, members of the UMWA ratified a contract that guaranteed better wages, pensions and job security.

Roberts Becomes UMWA President

Following Richard Trumka’s election as Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO in 1995, Vice President Cecil Roberts became the President of the union. The UMWA’s constitution provided for the Vice President to automatically succeed the President. Roberts has held the position ever since and is the second longest serving President, as well as the longest serving elected official in our long history.

“I can promise you just a few things; one, that I am now and will always be a Mine Worker first and foremost,” said UMWA President Emeritus  Richard Trumka.

“I can promise you that I’ll do anything and everything within my power to make this organization proud of one of its own, and I’ll never forget where I came from. You will have someone who will be fighting for you forever.”

Trumka served as AFL-CIO Secretary Treasurer and then President until he passed away suddenly in 2021 at the age of 72 . His last public comments were to the membership of the United Mine Workers in a recorded video just days before his death. The video was in support and solidarity for striking miners and was shown at a rally in Brookwood, Alabama, which was the largest labor rally in Alabama history.

The UMWA held its 51st Constitutional Convention in Miami, Florida before a delegation of more than 800 who set forth a new path for the union going forward. The delegation placed emphasis on organizing, delegating $1,000,000 to an organizing fund from proceeds of the selective strike fund, reducing the strike fund assessment from 2.5 percent to 1.5 percent of gross wages until the fund reached $75,000,000, and reducing it again to 1 percent when it reached $100,000,000.

The delegation also voted to increase participation in union elections, allowing retirees, disabled members and members on active duty in the military to vote by mail in district and international elections. They were also tasked with ensuring viable candidacies for International and District Office by requiring candidates to be nominated by at least 20 percent of the local unions in their jurisdiction.

Going Head-to-Head With the BCOA…Again

Aiming to build on previous success from the 1993 national contract, the UMWA was seeking an early start on negotiations for a contract that was set to expire August 31, 1998. International officers knew some tough challenges were ahead to reach an early agreement for the membership. Those included utility deregulation, a pending global warming treaty, Clean Air Act restriction on sulfur dioxide emissions and cutthroat competition in the coal industry.

“We don’t think the coal companies want a repeat of the 1993 strike. While we always hope for the best, we are well prepared for the worst,” Roberts said.

“The best way to avoid a strike and win a good contract is to start from a position of strength. Our selective strike war chest will soon top $100 million,” Roberts said at the time. “Our solidarity and determination, as shown by our most intense organizing efforts since the 1930’s, remains as strong as it has ever been in the history of our union.”

An early, new contract with the BCOA came on December 16, and for many it was the best present they ever received; the new “20 and out” pension language. That clause allowed miners to retire with 20 years of service at any age, instead of waiting until they turned 55. The new five-year contract with the BCOA was ratified later that month by an historic 3-1 margin.

2003: Reorganization to Ensure Promise is Kept

Delegates to the UMWA’s Special Convention convened in Las Vegas on September 29, 2003, tasked with preparing the union for the next ten years and ensuring it had the resources needed to fight the tough battles ahead. The theme of the convention was “Keep the Promise: Whatever it Takes!!” Sixteen years later, on December 20, 2019, Congress “Kept the Promise” and secured the pensions and health care of the men and women who risked their lives to energize our nation.

“We are committed to taking care of all UMWA members; unemployed, disabled, retired, active, and their dependents. No other union has been able to secure the amount of government funding that we have to continue to serve our members and their families,” Roberts said.

“Our goals remain to ensure the union’s structural autonomy, continued excellence in membership representation and long-term financial viability, but we also need to have the money to ensure Congress keeps its promise and confront any challenges that might arise when we sit back down to bargain with coal operators in 2006.” Roberts said.

“Thanks to structural changes made in 1996, our union is financially sound, but we can’t continue to operate within our existing structure and have the assets needed to fight the battles ahead while also expanding our membership. Unless we change our structure now, we will not have the resources to fight for your future health care and pensions.

“The work we do here in the next few days will determine the fate of our great union. The plan we have presented to you will position our union in a manner that will allow us to continue to fight and win the battles that lie ahead,” said then Secretary-Treasurer Carlo Tarley.

“We have faced many challenges together; the contract re-opener in 1996, the 1998 and 2002 contracts, numerous attacks on the Coal Act, as well as many attempts to roll back coal mine health and safety laws,” Tarley said. “And like no other union, we beat back every challenge that has come our way. But one thing is for sure; no matter how strong or how dedicated we may be, there can be no success without a plan or without proper leadership.”

The delegation voted on each resolution presented, including:

• Combining the International Auditor and International Teller positions,

• Reducing the number of union-wide elected positions from ten to three,

• Combining the District President, District Secretary-Treasurer and International Executive Board member positions into one position titled International Vice President.

• Transferring the processsing and collection of dues to the International Union and re-designating Districts as divisions of the International Union and District Representatives as employees of the International Union.

At the conclusion of the special convention, the delegation, in solidarity with the proposed resolutions, simply said, “We’ve done what we needed to do.”

Greater Numbers, Greater Strength

During this time, organizing wins were taking place across the country. Collective bargaining agreements were reached with Simon Duplex, Inc., in Ohio, Romeo & Sons in Pennsylvania and Somerset County Court in Pennsylvania. Kemmerer City Workers unanimously approved a new agreement that included flexible work schedules, sick leave, vacations and holidays.

The Southeast Ohio Emergency Medical Services fought for eight months to win their first UMWA contract. Employees of the city of Gallup, New Mexico voted for UMWA representation and won in a landslide vote. In 1996, more than 1,200 workers at Remington Arms in Ilion, New York voted to join the UMWA.

The organizing training of more than 500 rank-and-file members had paid off. New membership was being gained quickly. Workers at a manufacturing plant in southwest Virginia, an education facility in Alberta, Canada, workers in Rock Springs, Wyoming and clerical workers in southern Illinois all voted and secured representations with the UMWA. The union organized more UMWA members in 1996 on a scale the union hadn’t seen since the days of John L. Lewis.

Organizing was again a primary focus of our most recent UMWA Constitutional Convention in 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The delegation supported and voted that organizing should be made a top priority for the union to grow. As President Roberts said more than 20 years ago, the greater our numbers, the greater our strength.

U.S. Supreme Court Unanimously Voids UMWA Fines

After the bitter 9-month strike against Pittson Coal Company was settled on January 1, 1990, Pittston agreed to join with the UMWA and asked the judge to drop $64 million in fines. Judge Donald McGlothlin agreed to drop the $12 million that was earmarked for the company but refused to eliminate the balance of $52 million, which was to be paid to the state and two counties in southwest Virginia.

A Virginia Court of Appeals later threw out the fines, but the Virginia Supreme Court reinstated them in order to maintain “the dignity of the law and public respect for the judiciary.” The UMWA took the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1993, the federal Justice Department asked the high court to uphold the fines, arguing that reversing McGlothlin would hinder the authority of federalagencies. The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously reversed the judge on June 30, 1994, marking a tremendous victory for the UMWA.

On March 8, 1924, a series of explosions occurred at the Castle Gate coal mine in Carbon County, Utah. The first blast was attributed to inadequate watering down of the coal dust from the previous shift’s operations. A fire boss was investigating methane gas near the roof of the mine when his lamp went out. He attempted to relight the lamp with a match which ignited gas and coal dust, setting off a chain reaction of explosions in the mine, killing 172 miners. The disaster left 110 widows with 264 children. There were no survivors.

The force of the explosion was so powerful it launched a mining car, telephone pole, and other equipment nearly a mile from the entrance of the mine. “Safety laws were all but nonexistent when this horrible explosion occurred a century ago,” said President Roberts.

“After the disaster, the government reviewed safety laws and created amendments and resolutions to make mines safer. This included funding for mine inspectors, requiring coal dust to be cleaned from abandoned rooms, and many others. These new procedures by no means stopped other mining disasters, but they did help improve the safety of the mines,” Roberts said.

“Castle Gate is the second worst mining disaster in Utah’s history,” said International District 22 Vice President Mike Dalpiaz. “The United Mine Workers started organizing in Utah around 1933 and this tragedy helped the union in that effort because miners wanted safety laws enacted.”

“The nationalities of the men killed in the explosion were Greek, Italian, English, Welsh, Japanese and Austrian. Ironically, our union was established by immigrants from all over the world who wanted to form a union, and that’s what the UMWA did in the years following this terrible tragedy; a tragedy that did not have to happen,” Dalpiaz said.

Relief Fund for the Victim’s Families

Immediately following the aftermath of the explosion, the Red Cross arrived at the scene to help the victims’ families. The governor at the time, Charles R. Mabey, realizing the community would need additional relief, called for public subscription to a relief fund for widows and children. He formed a committee to distribute $132,445.13 that was collected for the aid of the 417 individuals who were left without support following the disaster.

The committee hired a social worker to assess needs and disburse funds. The families did not receive disbursements from the fund for over three months after the disaster because it took time to gather the money from various banks across the state. The fund expired in December 1935, and the committee held its last meeting on January 12, 1936.

Today, a granite and bronze monument is located in the canyon north of Helper to mark the general location of the explosion. The Castle Gate cemetery, which contains many of the victim’s graves, sits east of the canyon.

The UMWA has a long history of honoring its members at funeral services and providing support for families after losing a loved one. Members of the UMWA Chaplain Corps volunteer their time and come together to honor a fallen brother or sister with a traditional UMWA burial service.

An excerpt of the burial service that provides a solemn tribute states, “And now, our fellow worker, we pay the last sad rite and tribute of respect, the last one we can pay you in this world, placing on your grave these evergreens as a token of respect, that thy memory shall be with us always, though thou hast paid the debt and hast gone to the realms above.”

“The UMWA burial service is one of the most sincere tributes we can give to our fallen brothers and sisters after they have passed and provides comfort to their families,” said President Roberts.

“Unfortunately, I have attended more services for our fallen brothers and sisters than I can count,” Roberts said. “Coal miners have paid a tremendous debt to our country, and they should be honored with dignity upon their passing. The ceremony given by members of the UMWA’s Chaplain Corps is a selfless and heartfelt tribute given to families in their deepest hours of grief.”

Sub-District 28 Deep Roots and Still Going Strong

In the early days of coal mining in southwest Virginia, a small group of members would attend funeral services and wear UMWA ribbons while conducting the ceremony. Participation declined over the years but Sub-District 28 members have revitalized the old tradition. There was originally a Chaplain group in the Jewel Ridge, Richlands and Grundy area, along with a group in the Castlewood, Coeburn, Big Stone Gap area. In 2016, the groups were merged as one unit and brainstormed new ideas of how to conduct ceremonies going forward.

“We meet monthly, and we are always fine-tuning things,” said Local Union 1259 Financial Secretary Ken Holbrook. “The service we provide to families has been in our Constitution for over 100 years. Today, we all wear matching UMWA shirts and hard hats with a light attached.”

At the end of each ceremony, the family is presented with a Bible and a hard hat. “The hard hat is something we thought the family could put on a mantle. We have the member’s name and local union number put on it. It’s something they can keep in remembrance of their loved one,” Holbrook said.

During the service, one member reads from the burial service, another presents the Sub-District 28 banner and the rest of the group wait with the lights of their hard hats on. The Corps has performed 243 services since 2015. The group meets monthly and has expanded to more than forty members.

District 20 Comforts Grieving Families

District 20’s Chaplain Corps was co-founded in 1997 by Local Union 2133 member and pastor Elbert Jones, Sr., former District 20 President Rex Tanner and the Reverend Leroy Oliver, also of Local Union 2133. They never envisioned their services would be so valuable to the families of Brookwood so soon after their formation.

When explosions occurred on September 13, 2001, at the Jim Walters Resources No. 5 mine in Brookwood, Alabama, members of the District 20 Chaplain Corps were there to lend their comfort and support to the victim’s families. No one could foresee the magnitude of the mine explosions and the impact it  would have on nearly everyone in the close-knit community.

The explosion at No. 5 mine was a shock to the entire Brookwood community. The horrific disaster took 13 miners’ lives, and the loss to the community is  still felt today.

“After the mine explosions, no one knew what to do. The whole area was kind of in shock,” said International District 20 Vice President Larry Spencer.

“Everyone was offering support and prayers,”  Spencer said. “The Chaplain Corps was working closely with other pastors and counselors to assist the victim’s families. I honestly don’t know how we all would have made it through that difficult time without them.”

It’s More Than a Service; It’s an Honor

Local Union 1760 and Vice Commander of Sub-District 28 Chaplain Corps Danny Dye is humbled by his experience with the Corps over the years. “It’s the last thing we can do to show our respect to our brother or  sister when they pass,” Dye said.

“An evergreen is everlasting. Those who have passed on may be gone, but they will be remembered. They will not be forgotten. It’s an honor to do this for the families,” Dye said.

Dave Laurie, a member of Local Union 1058 in District 31,has been a part of the UMWA Chaplain Corps for several years. He remembers when President Roberts first asked him if he wanted to be a part of the  Chaplain Corps. “At first, I didn’t want to do it because I thought there might be other people more deserving than I was,” said Laurie.

“After talking to my wife and my dear friend Fred Myers, they convinced me that  I should do it. I am glad I did. I am a proud member of our union, and it really meant a lot to me. I’ve been honored to give invocations at several UMWA meetings over the years and have had the opportunity to counsel my fellow brothers and sisters during their difficult times.” Laurie said.

“Our UMWA Chaplain Corps is always there, providing a service to our members who are in need of prayers, counseling and in times of bereavement,” said President Roberts. “ These champions of humanity are always there to help their fellow miners and their families. I thank them for their dedication and commitment to not only the United Mine Workers of America but to every family that has been touched by their remarkable deeds.”

UMWA Chaplain Corps Members

District 2: A.J. Byers

District 12: Billy Smith, Mike Higgerson, Carl Shomate

Sub-District 28: Arnold Campbell, Bill Hale, Bill Richardson,
Bobby Dye, Bruce Baldwin, Cecil Dye, Charlie Vandyke,
Danny Dye, Danny Horton, Darrell Hess, Dean Vance,
Doug Shepherd, Eddie Lockhart, Freasure McGlothlin,
Greg Austin, Harold Harris, Harvey Hess, Henry Shortridge,
James Brown, James Lester, Jerry Dye, Jerry Owens,
Jerry Willis, Jim Hall, Josh West, Ken Holbrook, Larry Kilgore,
Larry Whited, Lee Potter, Lowell Yates, Phillip Keene,
Ralph Rife, Roger Jessee, Roy Sauls, Sam Hughes,
Stan Compton, Steve Wallace, Tommy Parrott, Tony Owens,
James “Snuffy” Smith, Lowell Bise, Jerry Stallard,
Freddie Wallace

District 20: Reverand Joe Craig Weldon, Sister Margaret
Martin, Pastor James Landers (Cadillac), Reverand Bo Jones,
Reginald Mann

District 22: Lou Shelley

District 31: Jack Rinehart, Ron Raber, Dave Laurie

Struggle & Win

Editor’s Note:

Keeping the UMWA’s history alive and relevant is a critical part of the union’s service to its members. If we do not know our history, then the harsh realities we overcame in the past cannot serve to guide us today. That is why we remember events like the Ludlow Massacre, the Farmington Mine Disaster, the Blair Mountain March, Davis Day and so many more.

Telling the incredible stories of the brave men and women who built our union is not just an exercise in research, it is an opportunity for us to learn how battles were won and what it takes to win them again.

Starting with this issue of the UMW Journal and continuing throughout 2024, we will recapture the last half century of our union’s victories and struggles. We’re calling the series Project 50: Struggle and Win.

UMWA’s 45th Consecutive Constitutional Convention

In September, 1968, the UMWA’s 45th Consecutive Constitutional Convention was taking place at the Denver Hilton. With nearly 2,000 delegates and 1,700 resolutions, the convention was iconic.

It was the first time  in the UMWA’s history that a presidential candidate would address the membership. Hubert H. Humphrey, a staunch friend and supporter of working people, chose the UMWA convention to kick start his official battle to win over labor votes.

International Secretary-Treasurer Owens announced to the delegates that the International Union was in the best financial condition in history with assets of over $86 million.

Dr. Lorin E. Kerr,  Assistant to the Executive Medical Officer of the UMWA Welfare and Retirement Funds and a recognized authority in coal miners’ dust diseases, presented an important paper on coal workers’ pneumoconiosis: The Road to a Dusty Death. The convention acted on a resolution that kicked off an all-out drive to bring a solution to the dust problems in American coal miners.

UMWA President Tony Boyle, in his closing remarks, said, “This union is going forward and forward and is going to be stronger and bigger than it was when I took office. I will have to use new techniques. I will have to use new ideas. And that is just exactly what I am going  to do.”

In 1968, when Boyle spoke those words in front of his fiery delegation, no one could have known how true his words really were, nor the horrific set of circumstances that happened next.

Farmington No. 9 Mine Explosion and the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969

It’s now been 55 years since 99 miners entered Consolidation Coal Company’s Farmington No. 9 Mine around midnight to begin their shift. At approximately 5:30 a.m. a massive explosion occurred. engulfing the miners inside. A series of explosions would occur thereafter. Twenty-one miners survived the initial blast and escaped. The other 78 miners were trapped inside. The lives of an entire community were forever changed.

The United States Bureau of Mines was immediately notified of the explosion. The first representative of the agency arrived at approximately 6:30 a.m. He issued two imminent danger orders for a mine explosion and a continuing mine fire. The orders restricted access to all underground areas of the mine except for necessary personnel approved by the parties involved in rescue and recovery efforts. Later that morning, UMWA mine rescue teams, state and federal mine inspectors, company personnel and representatives of the union arrived at the mine.

A day later, President Boyle arrived at the mine site and said to members of the press, “We have not given up hope. I came down here today not to give orders as to how the work should be conducted but more to make a showing here today on behalf of cooperation. This happens to be, in my judgement, as President of the United Mine Workers of America, one of the better companies to work with as far as cooperation and safety are concerned.”

Nothing was further from the truth, and those words didn’t sit well with the trapped miner’s families and members of the close-knit community. The small town of Farmington had never experienced what was bestowed upon them like a tornado.

News media from across the nation received word of the massive explosion and that 78 miners were still trapped underground. They flocked to the site, their cameras recording the smoke billowing from the mine
shafts and the grieving families.

It was the first time in history the effects of a coal mine explosion on family members and their community were televised across the country. They reported extensively on the disaster and without that coverage, Farmington may have been yet another unnoticed and forgotten mine explosion.

For nearly a week, all families could do was watch TV coverage, wait and pray for a miracle that never came. On November 29, the day after Thanksgiving, a meeting was held by officials who were working on the rescue and recovery operations. It was determined that all efforts to rescue trapped miners had been unsuccessful, air samples that were collected indicated the atmosphere could not support life and because of the fires still burning in the mine, further explosions were imminent.

Entrance into the mine from any location would not be possible and the only alternative would be to seal the mine. The news of sealing the mine was unbearable for family members to digest. The reality that their  loved ones were never coming home had just begun to sink in.

After the mine was unsealed, ten days after the explosion, the bodies of 57 of the trapped miners were recovered. Nineteen never were, and they remain entombed in the mine. Widows, children and family members were grief-stricken but collectively decided they needed to do something so that others would not meet the same fate as their loved ones. They banded together and started demanding reform to anyone who would listen and to those who wouldn’t.

Congress Passes the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act

These grieving individuals, with the support of the UMWA, attended meetings in Washington, DC to testify at hearings on Capitol Hill. They lobbied members of Congress relentlessly.

Their efforts to better protect future miners came to fruition on December 30, 1969, with the signing of the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act (Coal Act). It was a bittersweet victory. Their efforts would help save the lives of other miners and protect other families from suffering the horrors they had just experienced. But their loved ones still would never return home.

“November 20, 1968, was a day that brought great grief and pain to miners and their families,” said President Roberts. “The Farmington No. 9 tragedy and the horror of its aftermath was flashed on television screens
across the United States for all to see.

“For the first time, the American public saw what we in the coalfields always saw, which was that this industry was deadly, and the government did nothing about it,” Roberts said. “They witnessed the sorrow and pain of family members whose lives were devastated. It forced the nation to look at people who worked in the nation’s mines differently.

“In 2019, we held a special 50th year commemoration of the tragedy,” Roberts said. “What I said during that memorial service — and it will be true until the end of time — is that 50 years does not wash away the pain or fill the void of losing a family member. There is no amount of time that can heal those deep wounds.

“But we can take some solace in the fact that those brave miners did not die in vain. Because of their sacrifice and the determination of the family members, thousands of miners and their families have been spared a similar fate. Without their efforts, the Coal Act may have never been passed,” Roberts said.

President Roberts Begins His Coal Mining Career

On the heels of the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act being passed, a young man fresh back from Vietnam began his coal mining career in 1971, working various underground mining jobs at Carbon Fuel’s No. 31 mine  in Winifrede, West Virginia. That young man was a sixth-generation coal miner from Cabin Creek, West Virginia, Cecil E. Roberts, Jr.

Roberts was no stranger to coal mining or the UMWA. His great uncle was Bill Blizzard, a legendary union organizer during the Mine Wars and the leader of the union forces at the Battle of Blair Mountain. His father was a stalwart UMWA member.

He rose through the union’s hierarchy relatively quickly. He was active in his local union and District 17. In 1977, he was elected Vice President of District 17. Five years later he ran as the International Vice President candidate on the ‘Why Not the Best?’ slate with Richard L. Trumka and John Banovic. On November 9, 1982, the Trumka, Roberts, Banovic slate was elected by a 2-to-1 margin.

“There are plenty of books, UMW Journals and newspaper clippings about our history, especially the Mine Wars, the John L. Lewis era and Mother Jones,” Roberts said. “But it is up to us to make sure we secure our  place in the history books for what we have accomplished in the last 50 years, and that’s what Project 50 is all about.

“Thirty, forty or fifty years from now we don’t want anyone to forget that the Coal Act was passed or how we won the strike against the Pittston Coal Company,” Roberts said. “We don’t want people to forget that our retirees took on bankruptcy judges, Wall Street raiders and walked the halls of Congress for years to get legislation passed for pensions and healthcare. No one thought we would win, but we did.

“No one else is going to tell our story for us. It’s up to us to preserve it, share it and educate others about that history, good and bad,” Roberts said.

UMWA Election Year: Yablonski Murders and How the Expulsion of District 50 Played a Role

Tony Boyle was reelected to office on December 9, 1969, along with George Titler and John Owens. Boyle’s opponent for president, Joseph “Jock” Yablonski, filed charges disputing the election results as fraudulent.  On New Year’s Eve, just a few weeks after the election, “Jock” Yablonski, his wife Margaret and daughter Charlotte were murdered in their Pennsylvania home. Jock’s son, Ken, went to check on his father in  Clarksville, Pennsylvania and found the grisly scene. His mother, father and sister were killed in their bedrooms. Tires to their cars had been slashed and the phone lines to the house had been cut. Early in the  investigation, law enforcement believed more than one person was involved in the triple homicide. Investigators ultimately uncovered a conspiracy that stretched to Boyle himself. The criminal warrant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania stated that Boyle said to Albert Pass, president of District 19 and loyalist to Boyle, “Yablonski ought to be killed or done away with.” Shortly after, District 19 received $20,000 for a research fund from the union. Checks were cut to retirees who cashed them and gave the money to Pass who used the money as payment for murder of Yablonski and his family members.

Boyle had become cozy with mine owners, as evidenced by his late arrival at the Farmington No. 9 mine disaster and praise of the company’s safety record. Boyle had removed Yablonski from his position as District 5  president in 1965. He had 100,000 extra ballots printed to be stuffed in the ballot box. Two weeks before the ballots were to be counted, Pass told Boyle the vote totals from District 19; he had won the district and the election.

In April, 1970, Miners for Democracy was formed to continue reform efforts championed by Yablonski and to have the 1969 election invalidated. A judge eventually threw out the election results and set new elections  in 1972. Boyle was challenged and lost to Arnold Miller. Boyle was ultimately arrested and convicted of conspiracy in the Yablonski murders. He was one of nine people who went to prison for the killings. Miller was  a miner from West Virginia and struggled with Black Lung. He became a strong advocate for miners with the disease and led efforts in Washington, DC to persuade Congress to strengthen dust regulations in mines, culminating with an amended Coal Act in 1977 that created the Mine Safety and Health Administration and set respirable dust limits. Miller resigned on November 16, 1979 due to poor health relating to black lung. He passed away in July, 1985.

Sam Church, Jr., New UMWA President

Upon the resignation of President Miller, Vice President Sam Church, Jr., assumed the leadership on November 16, 1979, per the union’s constitution. Church was the son of a disabled coal miner and worked in the  mines as an electrician and mechanic for Clinchfield Coal Company.

In 1981, Church led the union on a two-month nationwide coal strike. After a tentative agreement was rejected by the membership, he negotiated a new contract that included improvements in benefits. Staring at  reelection in 1982, Church set his campaign in motion. Challenging Church and his slate was the ‘Why Not The Best?’ slate of Trumka, Roberts and Banovic. It was a hard fought and bitter campaign. Church lost the election but remained active in the union, going back to work in the mines and serving as coordinator for Virginia’s COMPAC. Church passed away on July 14, 2009 after complications from surgery. “Sam was a good friend and a good union man,” Roberts said. “He never stopped fighting to restore the right to organize, for better health care for working families and for safety in the workplace. Even though we ran against each other in the 1982 election, we were always able to see eye to eye when it came to the best interests of the UMWA. We lost a great friend and labor leader when we lost Sam Church,” Roberts said.