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UMWA encouraged by Senators’ letter

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NOVEMBER 22, 2016

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

“I am very encouraged and appreciative of the letter released today by 22 Senators to Congressional leadership, urging passage of the Miners Protection Act before Congress adjourns this year. This strong bi-partisan team includes Senators from Alaska to Florida, Minnesota to North Carolina and all points in between.

“Their clear message is that passing this legislation is not just critical for saving the lives of tens of thousands of coalfield retirees, it represents a ‘continuation of a longstanding commitment by our government to lifetime health and retirement benefits for our miners.’

“These retirees earned their retirement benefits through decades of dangerous, backbreaking work providing our nation with the energy it needed to become the most powerful on earth. They aren’t asking for a handout, they are simply asking the United States government to keep its promise to them.

“Some disasters, like floods and earthquakes, happen quickly and cause immediate suffering and loss of life. The disaster that will come to America’s coalfields if Congress fails to act on the Miners Protection Act will move slower, but will have the same terrible, deadly outcome.

“Congress can avoid this tragedy when it returns to Washington next week to wrap up its outstanding business. It must take action to preserve the health care and pension benefits of these retirees.”

President Roberts thanks Veterans for protecting Americans’ rights

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NOVEMBER 12, 2016

 

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

”On this Veterans Day, it is important to remember that our basic rights as Americans are not guaranteed because simply someone wrote them down; they are guaranteed because people put on our nation’s uniforms and fought to defend them.

“Regardless of how people voted last Tuesday, their ability to do so was defended by generations of active duty service members – far too many of whom gave their lives. Our right to vote, our right to free speech, our right to worship as we please, our right to seek redress from our government, our right to protest and many more rights have been given to us by our veterans.

“So whether you are about to assume a political office as a result of the election or out in the streets protesting that same result, thank a veteran. They made it all possible.”

President Roberts’ statement on results of Nov. 8 election

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NOVEMBER 9, 2016

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

“The people have spoken. Millions are happy with the results, millions are not. But they have all had the opportunity to make their voices heard.

“Working families in our nation’s coalfields are especially concerned about their future, and they made their voices heard loud and clear yesterday. President-elect Trump has spoken many times about addressing the serious economic disaster that is affecting large areas of Appalachia and other coal-producing areas of our country by putting coal miners back to work. No one is more interested in doing just exactly that than the UMWA.

“The first step to addressing the problems that exist in the coalfields is to ensure that the health care and pensions thousands of retirees worked their entire lives for are preserved. Failure to do so this year will only lead to more unemployment and misery in an area of the country that has seen more than its share of both. Congress needs to act in the coming lame-duck session to get this done and provide the jump-start toward revitalizing the coalfields that is so badly needed.”

UMWA appreciates Clinton support for Miners Protection Act

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OCTOBER 13, 2016

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

“I very much appreciate Secretary Clinton’s statement in favor of preserving promised retirement security for retired miners, their dependents and widows. As we work to finally secure a bi-partisan solution to maintaining the retirement benefits these workers earned in sweat and blood, we appreciate all the help we can get.

“This is not the first time she has been outspoken in her support for retired miners and their families. Indeed, she has been on the record for more than a year in opposition to coal companies using America’s broken bankruptcy laws to shed labor agreements and promised retiree benefits.

“Secretary Clinton’s is obviously an important voice on this issue, and we welcome her consistent and continued support.”

 

Patriot Retirees’ Health Care Benefits to End Dec. 31 Without Congressional Action

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OCTOBER 07, 2016

[TRIANGLE, VA.] The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) today released a letter that was sent by the Patriot Voluntary Employee Beneficial Association (Patriot VEBA) to some 12,500 of its beneficiaries informing them that the Patriot VEBA will run out of money to pay health care benefits on Dec. 31, 2016 (see letter below).

“These workers put their lives and their health on the line every day for 25, 35, even 45 years, providing the fuel that energized our nation and made it the most powerful country on Earth,” UMWA International President Cecil Roberts said. “They earned every penny of these benefits and now, through no fault of their own, they are on the brink of losing them.”

“America made them a promise 70 years ago: ‘You mine the coal that makes our country strong, and we will see to it that you have retirement benefits in your old age,’” Roberts said. “That promise has been kept by Congresses and administrations led by Republicans and Democrats from that day to this one. This Congress and this administration have a responsibility to do so once again.

“This is a life or death matter for thousands in the coalfields,” Roberts said. “They are counting on our government to fulfill its moral obligation and pass legislation this year that will save their lives.”

The legislation, S. 1714 in the Senate and H.R. 2403 in the House, would preserve these retirees’ health care and pension benefits using an existing appropriation already set aside for coal miners’ retirement benefits. The Senate Finance Committee last month approved S. 1714 by a bi-partisan 18-8 vote.

S. 1714 was introduced by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va) and has 22 co-sponsors in the Senate, evenly split between Republicans and Democrats. H.R. 2403 was introduced by Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.) and has 87 co-sponsors, 47 Republicans and 40 Democrats.

The affected retirees are those who worked at mines operated by Patriot Coal, Peabody Energy or Arch Coal and were represented by the UMWA. Patriot was created by a spin-off of Peabody’s unionized mines in 2007, and in 2008 it acquired mines that had been operated by Arch Coal.

Patriot entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2012, emerging on January 1, 2014. As part of the bankruptcy Judges’s order,, Patriot was relieved of its obligation to pay retiree health care benefits. However, the UMWA negotiated payments from Patriot and Peabody to fund the VEBA for several years. Arch later agreed to contribute funding for the VEBA as well.

Patriot was split up into separate companies as a result of a second bankruptcy in 2015, and Peabody and Arch filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2016.

“There is a ready solution to this critical problem,” Roberts said. “It is a simple solution, it is paid for and it is bi-partisan. When Congress returns to Washington in November, one of its first acts must be to pass this legislation and give these senior citizens the peace of mind that the benefits they paid for in sweat, toil and blood will be there when they need them.”

 

Patriot VEBA Termination Letter

Senate Finance Committee approves Miners Protection Act

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SEPTEMBER 21, 2016

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

“I am very pleased that the Senate Finance Committee voted today to approve the Miners Protection Act, Senate Bill 1714. It has been a long fight to gain a congressional committee’s approval of this critical legislation.

“The fact that we have achieved this goal is due to the very hard work of the sponsors of this legislation, Senator Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.) and Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), along with our stalwart supporters on the Finance Committee, Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Oh.), Senator Rob Portman (R-Oh.), Senator Ron Wyden (D-Or.), Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.), and Senator Bob Casey (D-Pa).

“I also want to thank the Chairman of the Finance Committee, Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Ut.), for his support and leadership on this issue.

“Now that this important first step has been achieved, it is vital that Congress move as quickly as possible to finally pass this legislation that will mean so much to the lives of thousands of senior citizens across America. There is no more time to waste.”

Labor Groups to Host West Virginia Gubernatorial Debate between Major Party Candidates

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AUGUST 29, 2016

Working Families’ Issues to be Focus of Event

[CHARLESTON, WV.] The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) and the West Virginia State Building and Construction Trades Council announced today that they have invited gubernatorial candidates Jim Justice and Bill Cole to participate in a debate in Charleston at the end of September.

 

Both candidates have already agreed to take part in two other debates hosted by the media. This third debate would focus solely on issues affecting workers in West Virginia. The two host unions represent coal miners and workers in the building trades industries and it will be those members who will make up the audience.

 

“As the General Election approaches, the working families of West Virginia would like to hear more from the gubernatorial candidates about their vision for the future and how their plans would affect our state’s working families,” said Joe Carter, UMWA International District 17 Vice President.

 

“Our membership is made up of Democrats, Republicans and Independents,” said ACT Director Steve White with the WV State Building and Construction Trades Council. “We’re pleased to offer this third debate so our members can hear first-hand where the candidates stand on issues like workplace safety and job creation.

 

The debate will be held at the Sheraton Four Points on either September 27 or 29. Candidates have been offered both dates for consideration. Additionally, a moderator has yet to be selected but the goal of both groups is to have an impartial professional facilitator or journalist.

UMWA files complaint about Fayette Co., Pa. Prison conditions with U.S. Dept. of Justice

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AUGUST 18, 2016

[TRIANGLE, VA.] The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International Union on Tuesday filed a complaint with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights Division on behalf of inmates and employees at the Fayette County, Pa. Prison, pointing out unsanitary conditions, routine maintenance deficiencies that put corrections officers and inmates in severe danger, compromised structural integrity of the facility and more.

 

“This facility is dangerous to the people who are incarcerated there, the people who work there and the entire community,” UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said. “I served in combat in Vietnam, and I worked miles underground in a coal mine. I have rarely been in a place that made me more concerned about my personal safety and the safety of those around me than when I toured the Fayette County prison last year.

 

“The fact that this prison is still in use is a gross disservice to the people of Fayette County and a scar on the reputation of the Fayette County Commission,” Roberts said. “We have been pleading with the Commission for years to take action to correct this problem, yet nothing has been done. They won’t even respond to our correspondence.

 

“They will have to respond to the Department of Justice now,” Roberts said. “This is serious business, and the Fayette County Commission has frankly refused to do its job on behalf of the people they represent. They have refused to address the very real safety concerns of the corrections officers who are charged with maintaining order in the prison.

 

“And I’m not a person who believes in coddling prisoners, but the conditions in that facility violate the Eighth Amendment of the constitution prohibiting cruel and unusual punishment,” Roberts said.

 

The UMWA represents the corrections officers at the facility. The union’s complaint focuses on issues of inadequate sanitation; crumbling, unrepaired and unsafe infrastructure, inadequate fire safety infrastructure and overcrowding. The UMWA is asking the DOJ to undertake its own investigation of the facility to determine whether or not conditions in the prison violate the Eighth and Fourteenth amendments of the U.S. Constitution.

 

The Union is also asking the DOJ to require the Fayette County Commission to “either adopt policies and take action to remedy the deficiencies at the jail and any further constitutional violations uncovered by DOJ’s investigation or to begin the process of planning for and constructing a facility to replace the jail.”

UMWA members ratify new agreement at Murray Energy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AUGUST 12, 2016

[TRIANGLE, VA.] Members of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) today voted to ratify a new collective bargaining agreement at six Murray Energy mines in northern West Virginia and Ohio as well as support facilities and idled operations, with 60.3 percent voting in favor of the contract.

“This was a tough vote for our members to take,” UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said. “The coal industry is in a depression and more than 50 companies have filed for bankruptcy in the last few years. Thousands have been laid off. The pressures on those who are still working are tremendous and growing.

“But despite all that, our members took a courageous stand by voting to try to keep their company operating while maintaining the best wages, benefits and working conditions in the American coal industry,” Roberts said.

The new five-year agreement maintains wages at current levels and includes a wage reopener after three years. Health care benefits for active and retired workers and their dependents remain intact, with slight increases in out-of-pocket costs but no monthly premiums. Total annual days off from work are initially reduced, but many of those days are regained over the life of the agreement. Importantly, Murray Energy agreed to remain in the UMWA 1974 Pension Plan.

“In addition to the courage shown by our membership, I want to express my thanks to all those Local Union, District and International leaders who worked so hard on achieving this agreement,” Roberts said. “They did outstanding work.”

 

UMWA to hold contract explanation meetings next week, ratification vote to be Aug. 12

[TRIANGLE, VA.] UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts will lead contract explanation meetings next week at several locations in West Virginia and Ohio to explain a new tentative agreement with the Bituminous Coal Operators Association (BCOA) to the UMWA membership and their spouses.

The schedule and locations of the meetings is as follows:

Tuesday, Aug. 9: Wesbanco Arena in Wheeling, W.Va. at 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., for members of UMWA Local Unions 1110, 1473, 1604, 1638, 1857 and 1886.

Wednesday, Aug. 10: Waterfront Place Hotel in Morgantown, W.Va. at 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., for members of Local Unions 1197, 1248, 1412, 1501, 1545, 1643, 1702, 1980, 6025 and 9909.

Thursday, Aug. 11: Centerville Senior Center in Centerville, Ohio at 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., for members of Local Unions 1810 and 5497.

The meetings are only for active and retired dues-paying members of the UMWA and their spouses. Details of the proposed agreement will be released after the ratification vote on Aug. 12.

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