In 1946 U.S. President Harry Truman promised lifetime retirement benefits to coal miners. But as the coal industry goes bankrupt, companies are opting out of their obligations to provide health care benefits to retirees and contribute to the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) Pension Fund—leaving the workers who built this country from the ground up out in the cold.   

Last week, AFGE stood side by side with thousands of coal miners and their families at a rally on Capitol Hill that put pressure on Congress to redirect excess funds from the federal Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund — a pot of money collected from coal companies—and use it to save miners’ essential health care benefits. 

“Retired miners are on the edge of losing everything they worked for,” said AFGE National President J. David Cox. “We won’t stand idly by as America breaks its promise to the very people who built this country. AFGE stands in solidarity with UMWA and the families who depend on them.”  

Learn more about saving coal miners’ health care and pensions at www.umwa.org.