Tentative labor deal made for thousands of miners

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The United Mine Workers said Monday it has reached a tentative labor agreement with a group of coal producers that employ about 3,000 of its members around the country.

The agreement on a new 5 1/2-year contract with the Bituminous Coal Operators Association covers about 125 local UMW offices, but the union said details will not be released until members are briefed Wednesday. Members are scheduled to vote on the proposed deal Friday.

The deal is likely to serve as a template for the union's dealings with other coal companies.

"This has been a long and intense process," union President Cecil Roberts said in a statement. "We had many issues to confront, especially with respect to our pensions, health care and wages ... We were able to meet those challenges."

The Bituminous Coal Operators confirmed the tentative agreement, but declined to comment.

The Washington, D.C.-based association primarily represents unionized subsidiaries of Canonsburg, Pa.-based coal and natural gas producer Consol Energy.

As of Dec. 31, nearly 3,000 of Consol's 8,600 employees — or 34 percent — were represented by the UMW, according to the company's latest annual report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Union mines accounted for 49 percent of the 62.4 million tons Consol produced in 2010, according to the filing.

The deal is significant because the union typically uses it as a model contract in negotiations with coal companies that aren't members of the association.

Outside of the association are most of the nation's largest coal producers, particularly those with large operations in the eastern United States from Pennsylvania through West Virginia and Kentucky to Alabama. That group includes Virginia-based Alpha Natural Resources, Cleveland-based Cliffs Natural Resources and St. Louis-based Patriot Coal.