SILVER CITY, N.M. — Miners in a southwestern New Mexico county once famous for its labor activism have voted against participating in the union.
The United Steelworkers Union members at Chino Mine in Hurley, N.M., recently voted 236-83 against participating in the union in a decertification election, the Silver City Sun-News reports
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Grant County — where the 1954 movie “Salt of the Earth,” based on an actual strike against the Empire Zinc Mine, was filmed — now won’t have union representation at any mine within the county.
The decertification vote was brought about by one man who began a petition to end the union.
Results were announced last week.
The Steelworkers Union represented 360 Chino Mine employees.
Eric Kinneberg, a spokesman for Freeport McMoRan, the Phoenix-based company that owns the mine, says officials were pleased with employee participation in the vote.
The National Labor Relations Board, which oversaw the election, will make the voting results official within 10 days of the election date. The Associated Press
