[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

“The United Mines Workers are mostly a rare thing in the western US.”
That’s right, and that’s why I suspect their comments of being “agenda driven!”

[Eric in the Ozarks]

The UMW will never penetrate the west. Its just not in the nature of the people there to join unions.
Kerr McGee proved you could operate a non union mine in the heart of UMW territory when they built Galatia. It was the first non-union mine in S. Illinois and the first to use diesel equipment underground.
The UMW tried to push the company around in the 80s and there were a couple of mysterious derailments of coal coming out of their wash plant. K/McG got a federal court injunction keeping any UMW member from trespassing within 100 feet of any rail track from Galatia to any Union Electric power plant. This company did not screw around.