University of Virginia Library

UMW Elections Pose
Challenge For Boyle

By HANK EVANS
and MEG VINSON

Arnold Miller is running a
close race in his effort to
unseat W.A. "Tony" Boyle in
the United Mine Workers
Union of America presidential
election to be held the week of
December 1–8.

The challenger is the
candidate of the Miners for
Democracy and his attempt to
defeat the well-established
union leadership of Mr. Boyle,
who has presided over the
UMW since 1963, is a rare
occurrence in labor politics.

The last person to oppose
Mr. Boyle was Joseph
Yabionski, who was murdered
along with his wife and
daughter three weeks after the
1969 election. A Labor
Department investigation
substantiated Mr. Yabionski's
charges of massive fraud and a
Federal judge ordered that
another election be held.

Officials Indicted

Since then five UMW
officials have been indicted, or
have pleaded guilty to the
Yabionski murders.

Mr. Boyle, 70, is running on
his previous record, which
includes the collection of
interest on delinquent money
owed by coal companies. This
money was used to increase the
union pension fund. Last
March the UMW president was
indicted for embezzling union
funds which were given to
union-supported political
candidates.

The two major planks of Mr.
Miller's platform are increased
pension and medical benefits
and stricter enforcement of
mine safety rules, Mr. Miller
charges that under Mr. Boyle's
tenure in office an average of
one miner has died every
working day in the mines.

Mr. Miller claims that he will
raise pension benefits to $200
a month, decrease the UMW
president's salary from
$50,000 to $25,000 per year,
and hold elections for all union
officials.

'Climate Of Fear'

The challenger says that Mr.
Boyle's rule "has created a
climate of fear and
intimidation within the union
– physical violence,
blacklisting – revocation of
pensions abound."

The United Mine Workers
Union, founded in 1890,
presently consists of 200,000
members, of which 80,000 are
pensioners. The majority of the
members are concentrated in
the Appalachian region of
Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West
Virginia, Virginia and Ohio.
The others are scattered as far
west as Montana.

Recently the union has
experienced hard times because
of the decline of the coal
industry, environmental
controls, and new sources of
power. From within, the union
has been threatened by
corruption, decay, and
dissension.

The latest polls indicate that
the election will be close. Both
sides predict victory. As of last
week Mr. Miller was running
one to two percentage points
ahead. Mr. Miller's victory
would be significant since such
challengers to national union
leaders have been few and
rarely successful.