UMWA plans annual rally in Greene County
Thousands of active and retired members of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) and their families are expected to turn out for a march and rally to show solidarity as the union works to negotiate a new national contract and preserve retiree pensions and benefits in Greene County on Friday.
The march is scheduled to begin at the Greene County Airport at 10 a.m. and proceed along Route 21 to the Greene County Fairgrounds, where the rally will be held.
UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts will be the main speaker. UMWA International Secretary-Treasurer Daniel Kane, Coalition of Black Trade Unionists President Terrence Melvin, International Brotherhood of Boilermakers Vice President Warren Fairley and UMWA district leaders from Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio will also speak.
“We are fighting to get legislation passed in Congress to protect our retirees’ pensions and health care,” Roberts said in a statement. “We are confronting the ongoing bankruptcy of Alpha Natural Resources and its demand to slash wages, benefits, working conditions and more for our members. And we are in the last year of a national collective-bargaining agreement.”
The downturn in the coal market could complicate negotiations for a new national contract with the Bituminous Coal Operators Association, said Phil Smith, UMWA spokesman.
“The coal market is not good right now,” Smith said.
The current contract expires this year, he said.
Alpha Natural Resources, which owns the Emerald and Cumberland mines in Greene County, is seeking to cut wages and benefits of UMWA members in it’s bankruptcy proceedings, Smith said.
Despite the challenges, UMWA members continue to work hard everyday, he said.
“Our members are still working hard and are the most dedicated workers in the United States,” Smith said.