Selby miners risk losing thousands of pounds in redundancy money if they back strike action in a dispute over pay and conditions.

UK Coal, owners of the 2,000-man Selby pit complex, say that miners who decide to support a series of one-day strikes could receive a reduced sum when the mines close next March.

The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) today balloted their members at all UK Coal-owned pits after rejecting the pay package offered by the company. Miners' leaders are instead demanding a 25 per cent pay increase over three years, with a standard hourly rate throughout the industry.

They also want overtime to be paid at time-and-a-half and double the hourly rate, with full pay for the first six months that miners are off sick.

Stuart Oliver, spokesman for UK Coal, told the Evening Press: "This decision is a crucial one for Selby miners. Their redundancy payments will be based on their earnings so the decision to strike would impact on these.

"It could cost them thousands of pounds in lost earnings.

"As far as UK Coal is concerned, we would ask them to put their families first and think of their future."

Mr Oliver said that strike action would not improve the pay offer to the level that the NUM is demanding.

But Steve Kemp, NUM national secretary and former Stillingfleet miner, said: "The offer that UK Coal put forward to the NUM negotiating committee was unacceptable.

"The situation that Selby miners find themselves in is ridiculous. We launched a campaign to persuade the Government and UK Coal to keep the pits open, but it seems to have failed.

"I deplore the actions of UK Coal and the fact that they would threaten and cajole the miners of Selby to stop strike action."

The NUM will find out on June 20 if its members are in favour of industrial action.

Updated: 12:18 Tuesday, June 10, 2003