TEU national President Dr Ryan has written to the general secretary of the miners’ union, the EPMU’s Andrew Little, to express the TEU’s heartfelt sympathy for the workers and families involved in the Pike River mine disaster.

Dr Ryan noted that many TEU members on the West Coast have been personally affected by the tragedy through kinship or friendship to the men who were killed. Many of the staff at Te Tai Poutini Polytechnic have been actively supporting their local community through the disaster. Some of the missing miners were students in programmes run by the same institution. You can view Dr Ryan’s message about the tragedy here.

TEU’s national council has resolved to donate $5000 to the EPMU’s Miners Families Support Trust and some individual TEU branches have also made donations to the trust. The cause of the disaster is not known and is unlikely to be known for many months, and the families will face hardship. Half of the funds donated to the EPMU trust will be contributed to the community fund being administered by the Grey District Council and half will be used to establish a dedicated fund for the education of the children of those killed. The trustees will be local union representatives.

Donations can be made at any Kiwibank branch or direct to bank account: Kiwibank 38-9011-0165987-00 Cheques made out to “EPMU Pike River Miners Families Support Trust” can also be sent by post, care of EPMU, PO Box 14-277, Kilbirnie, Wellington 6241.