By Kevin Lavery, KWMU
St. Louis, MO. – The world's largest coal company is denying assertions that it intimidates its employees to discourage them from unionizing.
Hundreds of miners marched on St. Louis-based Peabody Energy Friday to defend workers' rights to organize.
The United Mine Workers of America claims Peabody has fired employees for attempting to join unions. But Peabody spokesman Vic Svec says that's not company policy.
He says workers are free to decide for themselves whether or not to join but adds it's had the most success without unionization:
All of our employees at our subsidiaries have the best relationship when it's direct contact with the company, Svec said. And so our safest mines, our most productive mines are all union-free, and frankly, our experience shows that those are the most satisfied employees as well.
About 15 percent of Peabody's mining operations are represented by the
UMWA.