Pittston Strike May Be Ending as Coal Miners Vote on Pact

Appalachian coal miners voted Monday on a contract with Pittston Coal Group that could end an acrimonious 10-month strike that drew international support from labor organizations.

United Mine Workers Vice President Cecil Roberts planned to announce the result of the vote this morning at the union’s southwest Virginia district office, UMW spokesman Gene Carroll said. A simultaneous announcement was planned at the AFL-CIO convention in Miami.

James Hicks, president of Local 1259 in Cleveland, Va., said he was optimistic that the contract would be accepted. Many of the rank-and-file union members who voted in Virginia agreed that the overwhelming majority appeared to favor ratification.

Under the tentative agreement, Pittston would continue to pay 100% of miners’ health-care coverage, rather than forcing them to assume 20% of the cost. Pittston would also continue paying into an industry-wide pension fund from which it had withdrawn.

The company won the right to operate shifts around the clock and to suspend 13 workers accused of illegal strike activity and force them to go to arbitration if they want to keep their jobs.