> I am surprised there has been no discussion of this
> accident on this board.
>
> Anybody got links to good articles on it or about the
> attempts to unionize the mine
The mine is run by the International Coal Group, which is controlled by Wilbur Ross. Ross is the same guy who put together the International Steel Group and bought Bethlehem, LTV, and Weirton Steel; extracted prodigious concessions from the Steelworkers including cuts in retiree health benefits; dumped the pension liabilities on the PBGC; and then sold the company for $4.5 billion to Lakshmi Mittal. He's now doing the same in coal. Details here:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06004/632241.stm
Most of the mines owned by International Coal are non-union, including this one. I find it especially endearing that they're saying that International Coal was "improving" the safety performance of the mine as compared to Aker, the bankrupt operator that they bought out this past November. Why the mine was still in operation at all when it had so many outstanding safety violations is a question that Wilbur Ross and/or George Bush's Mine Safety and Health Administration ought to be forced to answer -- but likely never will. I'll answer it for them, though: because it was profitable for a lot of people who didn't have to go underground to die. It turns out that the class struggle is very much alive, doesn't it?
- - - - - - - - - - John Lacny http://www.johnlacny.com
Tell no lies, claim no easy victories