January - February - United Mine Workers of America

Government
in action
Michael Ryan, L.U. 8843
Although it will be tough, I feel President Obama will turn this country
around. I look forward to an administration where the President’s pick
to lead MSHA will be someone
who will be fair and just,
unlike the previous administration’s
pick, who was in
the back pocket of the coal
operators. Obama has the
potential of being the most
positive change coal miners
have ever seen.
Matt Alley
in the 1930s and ’40s,” Roberts said.
“And the reason working families
have seen their real incomes shrink
over the last decade is because of the
loss of union membership and power
of the labor movement.
“If we are to rebuild America
and work our way out of the economic
disaster left to us by George
Bush and his big business cronies,
then a renewed and strengthened
labor movement must be part of the
solution,” Roberts said. “Any other
course will keep us all on the slippery
slope to economic ruin.”
demand fair treatment and a voice
on the job.
“America’s labor laws are broken,”
said President Roberts. “The
employers and their armies of unionbusting
consultants have figured
out loopholes in the law big enough
to drive a steamroller through, and
that’s just what they’ve been doing.
“Employers know it’s illegal to
fire someone for union activity, but
they fire them anyway,”
Roberts said.
“If they ever have to
face a penalty, it will
be years away and
not anything serious.
In the climate of fear
and intimidation
that is so prevalent
in American workplaces
today, the choice people have
is not whether they want a union or
not, it’s whether they want a job or
not. That’s just wrong and needs to
be changed.”
The Employee Free Choice Act
is the solution to this problem. It will
restore workplace rights for millions
of Americans by:
• Allowing employees to form
unions by signing cards authorizing
union representation, or by
holding a secret-ballot election
should the workers—not the
companies—choose to hold one.
• Establishing stronger penalties for
violation of employee rights when
workers seek to form a union, and
during first-contract negotiations.
• Providing for
mediation and
arbitration of firstcontract
disputes.
The U.S. House
passed the Employee
Free Choice Act last
year, but it was never
brought up for a
vote in the Senate.
President Obama was a cosponsor of
the legislation in 2008, and consistently
stated his support during the
campaign and since. The entire U.S.
labor movement is working hard for
passage of this bill.
“The only reason there is a
middle class in America today is
because of the rise of labor unions
Manuel Anaya,
L.U. 3106
I think Obama has the ability
to work with both sides, so we
can finally get something done
instead of people in Washington
pointing fingers at each
other. We’ve got to undo much
of what happened under the
prior administration. We need
labor people in MSHA, instead
of rewarding corporate cronies
who are looking for a title.
We’ve had people in there who
were hired based on who they
knew, not what they know.
David Kameras
United Mine Workers Journal • January/February 2009 13