P. M. BRIEFING : Miners Voting on Pittston Pact
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ROANOKE, Va. — The United Mine Workers, in a shift of policy, is proceeding with a rank-and-file vote on a contract with Pittston Coal Group though $64 million in strike-related fines have not been dropped, a UMW official said today.
The union’s turnabout means that a vote to end the 10-month strike against the nation’s largest coal exporter could come as early as Monday, according to Don McCamey, secretary-treasurer of UMW District 28 in Castlewood.
A settlement was reached New Year’s Eve with the help of William Usery, a special mediator appointed by Labor Secretary Elizabeth Hanford Dole, but terms have not been disclosed publicly. Sources familiar with the agreement, however, said the union won concessions they sought on the two biggest concerns: job security and health and retirement benefits.
UMW President Richard Trumka said Jan. 1 that the union would withhold a rank-and-file vote until all legal action connected with the strike was settled.
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