Tentative Deal Made to End Coal Strike

By Johnson, Clair; Benoit, Zach

The Westmorland Coal Co. and the union representing striking coal miners at the Absaloka Mine reached a tentative agreement Friday, a union official said.

George Golie, the union negotiator for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 400, said the union and Westmoreland reached a tentative agreement after two days of talks in Billings with federal mediator Ted Handel of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.

The talks addressed remaining issues of work schedules, premium- time compensation and wage and benefit rates, Golie said. The proposal will be presented to union members for a vote Monday in Hardin. The proposed agreement would be for three years, he said.

A Westmoreland spokeswoman declined Friday to comment.

The strike began June 7 when 125 members of Local 400 walked out, saying they needed a shorter-term contract, reliable scheduling and benefits comparable to those given to workers at other Westmoreland mines.

At 12:01 a.m. on June 7, the 125-member crew at the mine went on strike after the union rejected a five-year contract offer from Westmoreland. Miners have been picketing at the Westmoreland entrances since.

The miners have been working without a contract since March, preceding months of negotiations. Wages and shift and overtime hours were key elements in the miners’ decision to strike.

Negotiations between the workers and Westmoreland continued through the week, with the workers rejecting another offer on June 11.

The 1,500-acre Absaloka Mine is 30 miles east of Hardin. The strike is the mine’s first since it opened 34 years ago. Coal reserves at the Absaloka Mine are leased from the Crow Tribe, and the mine produces about 7 million tons of coal each year.

Copyright Billings Gazette Jun 14, 2008

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