UMWA President Calls Restraining Order An 'Assault On Rights'

TUSCALOOSA, AL — The president of the labor union that has been on strike since April at Warrior Met Coal in Brookwood claims a restraining order issued by a Tuscaloosa County Circuit Court judge against strikers on the picket line is an "assault on the rights and freedoms of working families."

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United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International President Cecil E. Roberts said on Thursday that the restraining order restricts the union members' rights to free speech and assembly, which comes after numerous reports of violence at the hands of those on strike against current Warrior Met employees as they cross the picket line.

"It contains provisions that are unconstitutional and it reinforces the notion that Americans – at least in Alabama – are not free to enjoy their rights to free speech and free assembly," Roberts said. “The Constitution of the United States protects American citizens’ rights to stand on the side of a road and call a scab a scab. It protects their rights to peacefully assemble and air their grievances with an employer or any other person or entity. It protects their rights to seek redress from government. We intend to continue to exercise our rights."

Roberts went on to underscore the importance of educating the public about what is going on in the strike area and how it escalated to such a point.

“Consider for a moment that the Wall Street bankers who are calling the shots at Warrior Met took $1.4 billion in workers’ concessions out of Alabama communities and sent it up to New York to line their pockets," he asserted. "And then sucked another $750 million from the company’s revenues almost immediately after Warrior Met emerged from bankruptcy. That’s more than $2 billion that could have stayed in Alabama helping our communities, but went to the glittering skyscrapers in Manhattan instead."

Roberts also levied criticism at the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency for using taxpayer money to escort out-of-state strikebreakers across the picket line.

"We have seen no protest or investigation by our state’s leaders about this clear misuse of taxpayer dollars," he said. “Instead of spending time and money on ever-rising legal fees in court, Warrior Met would be much better served to accept my still-standing offer of direct, high-level negotiations to resolve this dispute as soon as possible."

The latest series of accusations from the union wrapped up with Roberts saying UMWA remains willing to engage in negotiations with the company, before saying the temporary restraining order would not stop the strike.

Negotiations in Brookwood, however, remain stalled, despite previous optimism that a collective bargaining agreement for a mine in Adger in September would pave the way for talks in Brookwood.

Approximately 1,100 UMWA members at Warrior Met first walked off the job in April, citing their desire for a new collective bargaining agreement between UMWA and Warrior Met. Votes were then cast in local union halls the same month, but failed and set the course for a contentious seven months of the protracted strike thus far.

The push for a new collective bargaining agreement has included large-scale public rallies at Tannehill State Park in McCalla, which have been met with impressive support from community members and policymakers, alike.

The strike has also been destructive and, at times, violent, as those on the picket lines clash with company employees. In May and June, as the strike wore on past its first month, Warrior Met Coal offered a $10,000 reward after damage was caused to company equipment on three separate occasions.

Since then, more instances of vandalism and violence have been reported, prompting the west Alabama coal producer to file for the temporary restraining order.

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