CHARLESTON, W.Va. — United Mine Workers President Cecil Roberts recalls the first time he met the late AFL-CIO President Rich Trumka. Roberts was working for Carbon Fuel Coal Company and had been called out of the mines to assist union leaders in researching a number of strikes against the company which had resulted in a lawsuit.
While he was at the union hall, Trumka walked in with his suit, tie, moustache, and classic southwestern Pennsylvania accent. The two became fast friends as each had a rising stake in the United Mine Workers union. Roberts was considering a run for the organization’s presidency against incumbent Sam Church. Trumka was considering a run of his own.
The basis for the relationship of the two longtime friends and allies was forged like most relationships in Appalachia, during a conversation on a porch.
“We sat on the back porch of my home at Cabin Creek. The railroad was about 40 feet away and then there was the hillside. We talked for hours, hours, and hours about the union. The only commitment either of us made was we wouldn’t run against each other because that would make it impossible to overtake an incumbent,” said Roberts on Friday’s edition of MetroNews Talkline.
Eventually the two would run on the same ticket with Trumka as the Presidential candidate and Roberts as his vice president.
“We had to have each other’s backs. People would approach Rich and say bad things about me and people would appraoch me and say bad things about Rich and I’d have to defend him. At the end of the day, we won that election by a landslide,” he explained.
Roberts said Trumka brought a new image to the powerful union with media savy, charisma, and extremely rich articulation. The were key tools the union had struggled to find since the departure of John L. Lewis.”
“We hadn’t seen that since John L. left in 1959. Quite frankly, he was not only the best spokesperson for the United Mine Workers, but for the Labor Movement itself,” he said.
It set the union on a completely different course and the leadership hasn’t changed since. Trumka would eventually go on to become the President of the AFL-CIO and Roberts would ascend to the Presidency of the UMWA which he still holds today.
Despite his coal roots, Trumka and the AFL-CIO endorsed Barrack Obama for President during both terms. The UMWA did not endorse Obama’s second term because of the detrimental impact of administration policies on the coal industry. When asked about the decision, Roberts pointedly said it was about serving the labor movement overall.
“Rich was looking after the interests of 11 Million people and there’s a world of difference there. It wasn’t a decision that served coal miners well and we’ve acknowledged that, but you also have to consider did it help the labor movement and working people as a whole and I think most would say yes,” Roberts explained.