Archives: Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JANUARY 24, 2019

“800,000 Americans who provide essential services to the rest of us will miss their second paycheck in a row because Washington politicians are trying to resolve political differences on their backs. Federal workers are standing in line at food banks, negotiating with creditors about their mortgages and keeping the heat on in the winter, taking donations of diapers and baby food all because some politicians are refusing to follow the democratic principles that have kept our nation moving forward for more than 200 years.

“Nearly 500,000 workers are now being forced to work without pay, in jobs that are critical to our nation’s safety and security. FBI agents, Coast Guard personnel, TSA screeners, air traffic controllers, airplane safety inspectors…they are still on the job but haven’t seen a dime for more than a month. We salute their dedication to the rest of us, but we also believe that a worker must be paid for his or her labor in a timely manner, no matter where they work or what they do.

“Making federal political policy through government shutdowns has never been a good idea, and never results in a good outcome for the American people. We urge all parties to recognize that in our system of government a majority rules, and that includes votes in Congress. If your proposal has the votes, then pass it. If it does not, then it is time to move on and get back to doing the business of the people.

“The Washington politicians must end this shutdown now. Stop holding the families of 800,000 American workers hostage in an attempt to subvert the democratic principles of our nation.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DECEMBER 28, 2018

[TRIANGLE, VA.] United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International President Cecil E. Roberts issued the following statement today:

“The UMWA today received notice from the United States District Court of the Southern District of West Virginia that our lawsuit against the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) regarding its unlawful lifting of the Pattern of Violations (POV) status at Pocahontas Coal Company, LLC’s Affinity Mine has been put on hold for at least two weeks due to the government shutdown. This is unacceptable and puts miners at risk.

“Our lawsuit demanded that the court immediately order MSHA to put the Affinity Mine back on POV status because without the extra enforcement that comes with such status, there is no reason to believe mine management will maintain the highest safety standards. In addition, other mines that are currently on POV status may feel free to ignore safety issues if they believe MSHA will continue to flout Congress’s express mandate regarding removing a POV status.

“Obviously, if government employees at the Court are not being paid, they should not work. It is a real shame that the critical work our government employees perform day in and day out is being held hostage to issues that do not pertain to them or the issues they deal with on our behalf. There are real people whose lives are at stake here. Every day we delay raises the risk. Congress and the President need to put our government employees back to work without delay.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DECEMBER 18, 2018

[HOUSTON, TX.] Six active and retired workers from Westmoreland Coal Company’s Kemmerer mine traveled here to witness today’s hearing in the US Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of Texas as the company’s lawyers argued for bonuses to be paid to high-paid executives of the bankrupt company.

            “It’s an outrage that Westmoreland is seeking to provide bonuses to a few salaried executives while demanding that hourly workers take cuts in wages, health care and retiree benefits,” said United Mine Workers of America International President Cecil E. Roberts. “They want to reward the very people who drove Westmoreland into bankruptcy while kicking the workers – the ones whose sweat and blood have provided decades of wealth to the company – to the curb.

            “As unfair as that is, the truth is they will probably get their bonuses, because American bankruptcy laws are stacked against workers and in favor of executives and the company’s lenders,” Roberts said. “The executives of this company have already received enormous bonuses in the last year, at the same time they were steering Westmoreland into bankruptcy.

“And now they are to be rewarded for that?” Roberts asked. “As far as I am concerned U.S. Bankruptcy Courts have become little more than venues for official corporate looting at the expense of working and retired Americans.”

            The miners, from Westmoreland’s mines in Kemmerer, Wyo., and Beulah, N.D., volunteered to make the trip to demonstrate to the court that although the proceedings are far from the company’s mines, the hourly employees are watching what is happening.

“This is about our lives,” said Martin Argyle from Kemmerer. “I’ve worked at that mine for 45 years. I earned my health care, and now when I need it the most Westmoreland wants to take it away from me. I don’t know how I’ll survive without it.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DECEMBER 18, 2018

[TRIANGLE, VA.] United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International President Cecil E. Roberts issued the following statement today:

            “The news story from NPR and Frontline this morning about a new epidemic of Black Lung among coal miners was well done, but it failed to drive home who the real culprits are for the rise of this insidious workplace disease: The coal companies that chose to break the law and ignore the respirable dust standards in place over the last 30 years.

            “The fact that younger miners are getting this disease is especially damning to the industry, because it shows that even in the last decade or less, a large number of coal operators chose to put their employees’ lives at risk simply to be able to mine coal faster. That is criminal, and the perpetrators of this crime should be locked up.

            “It takes three things for a mine to be consistently operated in a safe and healthy manner: First, a company that is willing to follow the law; second a government that is willing to enforce the law; and third, a workforce that is empowered to speak up for itself about health and safety issues in the mine. When any one of those three things are missing, miners are at risk. When they are all missing, as was the case in the mines NPR/Frontline cited in its story, miners die.

            “For the National Mining Association to say that it ‘can’t be responsible for what happened in the past’ is outrageous. The industry must be held responsible, because if they had followed the law in the first place there would not have been excessive dust in the mine atmosphere.

            “This report comes at a critical time, as the contributions the companies make to the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund are about to be cut by more than half at the end of the year. This will cause the deficit in that Fund to skyrocket, sticking taxpayers with a bill that the companies should continue to be responsible for.

            “No coal company has gone out of business because it pays an extra 55 cents in contributions on every ton of coal it mines to that Fund. It is clear that the need for this fund will be long-lasting as younger miners are afflicted with Black Lung because their employers chose to not follow the law. Now is not the time to cut back on coal company contributions to this Fund.  

    ​       “This is a problem that is caused by coal companies and should be paid for by those same coal companies, not taxpayers. Congress must act quickly, before the end of the year, to extend the current contribution rates for the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund.” 

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[CHARLESTON, W.VA.] United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International President Cecil E. Roberts issued the following statement today:

“I am deeply troubled by the statements made by some, including at least one incoming member of the House of Representatives, that U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) should be prevented from taking the position of Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

“As a West Virginian, I find such opposition insulting. We just reelected Sen. Manchin to a new term of office, and we expect him to be offered the exact same rights as any other Senator. We are no less American citizens than residents of any other state, including New York, and our Senators and Representatives have the same rights to hold committee leadership positions as any other Senator or Representative from any other state does.

“Further, I am extremely disappointed that some of those newly elected to the House of Representatives would insert themselves into what is a procedural issue in the Senate. I’m wondering if they don’t really understand the bi-cameral nature of Congress. They have exactly zero input into who should be doing what in the Senate.

“But before they started insulting a good Senator and all the people of the state he represents, they should have taken the time to come to West Virginia, meet the people here and find out what our communities and our lives are actually like. We may not be as tech-savvy or fashionable as the people of New York City, but we are Americans just the same. We have hopes and dreams for ourselves and our kids just like people everywhere do. And we elected Sen. Manchin to represent us because he reflects who we are.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NOVEMBER 30, 2019

[TRIANGLE, VA.] The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) yesterday filed a complaint in the United States District Court for Southern District of West Virginia, charging that the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) unlawfully released Pocahontas Coal Company, LLC’s Affinity Mine from MSHA’s Pattern of Violations (POV) status in August.

The Complaint charges that, “Defendants are in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) for unlawfully ignoring the statutory and regulatory requirements for terminating a POV Notice and replacing it with another process that was not created by Congress or otherwise properly promulgated.”

MSHA placed the Affinity mine on POV status on October 24, 2013, because of a long record of significant safety violations.  POV is an enforcement tool that enables MSHA to increase regulatory scrutiny at a mine with a long history of serious safety and health violations. For a mine to be released from POV status, Congress mandates that there must be a full inspection of the mine in which no Serious and Substantial (S&S) violations are found. That was not the case prior to Affinity being released from POV status.

“When MSHA announced it was releasing the Affinity mine from POV status, we immediately questioned that decision,” UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said. “The agency did not follow the law as clearly spelled out by Congress when it enacted the POV enforcement tool as part of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Act of 1977 (Mine Act).

“We filed this complaint because this decision by MSHA is a direct threat to miners’ health and safety anywhere in the United States,” Roberts said. “Mines that are not operated safely deserve the extra scrutiny they get under POV status, and management needs to prove that it can operate safely before that status is lifted. But that is not what happened here. If the agency can flagrantly ignore the law and lift POV status at Affinity and get away with it, then it will do so again. We want to make sure that cannot happen.”

The UMWA’s complaint asks that the Court declare that MSHA’s actions violates the Plaintiff’s rights under the APA and the Mine Act, that it issue a writ to compel MSHA to take all appropriate action to enforce Section 104(e) of the Mine Act by enforcing the POV Notice at Affinity Mine, and that it set aside as unlawful MSHA’s action in terminating the POV Notice at Affinity Mine.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NOVEMBER 9, 2018

[TRIANGLE, VA.] United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International President Cecil E. Roberts issued the following statement today:

            “As we mark the 100^th anniversary of Veterans Day this weekend, it is not enough to merely thank the millions of veterans who surround us in every community for their service to our country. We must honor their willingness to put their lives on the line to protect the very freedoms we hold dear.

            “They protected our freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, freedom to vote for the candidates of our choosing, freedom to support or criticize our leaders without fear of retribution and freedom to worship as we choose, to name just a few. They took an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States and that is exactly what they did.

            “On Memorial Day, we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for America. But we cannot let Veterans Day pass without pausing to reflect on what their sacrifice means to us, and how their loss will affect their families forever. Those of us who came home know that we might not have, which makes remembering our brothers and sisters who did not survive all the more painful.

             “Veterans Day is a time of remembrance and giving thanks to those who had the courage and fortitude to defend us all. So let us bow our heads and say a prayer today for all our veterans, of whatever era. They have earned it, and so much more.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELASE

NOVEMBER 4, 2018

[CHARLESTON, W.VA.] United Mine Workers of America International President Cecil E. Roberts issued the following statement today:

“The ruling issued on Friday by the West Virginia Supreme Court that limits the ability of miners who are suffering from Black Lung to file workers compensation claims is a travesty. The new majority on the Court threw out decades of settled law and clear legislative intent in an outrageous ruling that demonstrates a callous disregard for human suffering, especially at a time when black lung is on the rise among miners of all ages.

“One only has to read Justice Margaret Workman’s dissent to understand just how far removed from traditional West Virginia values this ruling is. She said, ‘…Today’s opinion is an extreme departure from the long-standing rule of law firmly established in the management of Occupational Pneumoconiosis (OP) claims. The majority is way too eager to radically rewrite West Virginia Code….with far-reaching and grotesquely unfair consequences. It demonstrates either an ignorance of the law or a callous disregard for those who suffer from OP. While the majority claims to be against judicial activism, apparently it will make exceptions as its agenda requires.’

“We now have a clear understanding of what kind of rulings to expect from newly-appointed Justices Armistead and Jenkins. This ruling demonstrates just how important it is for working West Virginians, especially those miners who have contracted black lung or believe they will need black lung benefits in the future, to vote on Tuesday for Justices of the Supreme Court who will stand up for them.

The choices could not be more clear. Joanna Tabit and Jeff Kessler have the UMWA’s endorsement because they have the people’s interests at heart. Tim Armistead and Evan Jenkins have the big corporations and insurance companies interests at heart. West Virginia working families must keep that in mind as they head to the polls on Tuesday.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NOVEMBER 2, 2018 

[CHARLESTON, W.VA.] United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International President Cecil E. Roberts issued the following statement today:

“I was highly disappointed to learn that Gov. Jim Justice (R), passed up a strongly qualified candidate with decades of experience in protecting miners on the job when he announced his selections to head the West Virginia Office of Miners Health, Safety and Training (OMSHT) today.

“Carl Egnor has all the qualifications to lead that office, and do so in a way that puts miners’ safety and health in the forefront of every activity the office undertakes. But that’s clearly not the kind of person the mine operators, apparently including the Governor, want in that position or any of the other leadership positions in that office.

“The operators have spent the last several years trying to neuter the OMHST, by taking away all its enforcement powers and firing all its inspectors. I don’t think they will be happy until they have rolled back every safety law in the state to the days when miners were being killed by the hundreds every year.

“We can only hope that the Governor and those who are pulling the strings allow the OMSHT to continue doing its work to protect miners. I can promise this: the thousands of miners the UMWA represents in West Virginia will continue to have the protection of our Local Union Safety Committees and our collective bargaining agreement. And we offer those same protections to miners who choose to join our union, because they are going to need it.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Digital effort for Manchin and Ojeda also launched

[CHARLESTON, W.VA.] Television spots sponsored by the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) began running today on broadcast and cable outlets in four West Virginia media markets in support of the re-election of U.S. Senator Joe Manchin. The $360,000 buy was reserved last May.

In addition to the TV spots, the union this week began a digital campaign in support of Manchin and State Senator Richard Ojeda, who is running for the U.S. House in West Virginia’s 3^rd District.

“UMWA members and all coal miners have no better friend in the Senate than Joe Manchin,” UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said. “He led the fight in the U.S. Senate to preserve health care for 22,600 retirees, and he is leading the fight to preserve our retirees’ pensions. And contrary to what some say, the truth is that Joe Manchin has fought harder than anyone in Washington to preserve coal jobs and coal communities.

“Richard Ojeda comes from a long line of UMWA members, and he is a decorated combat veteran.  He understands the tremendous issues facing active and retired coal miners and their communities. He is part and parcel of those communities, and his take-no-prisoners approach is exactly the kind of attitude that is needed in Washington these days. We are proud to support him.”

The TV spots can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfrcXDP9se4t3KIeQa3jbrA

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