By Mike Tony, Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — For the first time in three decades, there’s a new leader atop the United Mine Workers of America.
Cecil Roberts officially retired from his position as UMWA president, the union announced Thursday after Brian Sanson was sworn in as his successor, a step up from what had been his role as secretary-treasurer.
Roberts had been an iconic, fiery force as UMWA’s head since 1995, fighting to preserve and expand health care and workplace protections for miners amid the coal industry’s long-term decline.
As Sanson takes over with Roberts’ endorsement, the union headwinds from a Trump administration that has moved to weaken key safety regulations and overseen significantly lower U.S. coal exports amid its heavy tariff reliance.
“Brother Roberts has devoted his life to the fight for justice, safety, and dignity for working families. It is an honor to continue his legacy and to lead this great union into the future,” Sanson said in a statement Thursday after he was sworn in as the UMWA’s 16th president in front of delegates at a UMWA convention in St. Louis.