Steelworkers flexing their muscle again

[question everything]

Inland Valley Daily Bulletin

Steelworkers flexing their muscle again
Once laid-off, workers find a place through ISG
By CONNIE MABIN
ASSOCIATED PRESS

(snip)

The sweat pouring from their brows, the coal-black grime under their fingernails are good things for a group who thought their steelmaking careers were over when bankrupt LTV Corp. closed, the latest in two decades of mills shuttered across the United States... Some 12,000 ISG employees got their jobs after the company bought bankrupt steelmakers, shed retiree costs and consolidated several expensive operations into a few cost-effective ones. Some 55,000 steelworkers nationwide lost jobs following the industry collapse of the 1980s and the influx of cheaper foreign steel in the 1990s.

(snip)


Richfield-based ISG bought LTV in 2002 and rose to become the nation's largest integrated steelmaker by buying and revamping operations in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. It shed the costs associated with more than 82,000 retirees and came up with a strategy to make steel cheaper with fewer workers, with whom profits are shared.

In late October, ISG found itself on the other end of a takeover bid when Dutch steelmaker Ispat International NV and LNM Holdings NV Now proposed a $4.5 billion merger. The combined group would be one of the largest steel companies in the world, operating under the name Mittal Steel Company NV. Owner Lakshmi Mittal said he does not plan layoffs... The United Steelworkers of America, which represents most ISG workers, also endorsed the proposal. "Larger, stronger steel companies benefit our members and retirees. We want our members to work for companies that are able to meet their obligations to them, while having the ability to compete in the global steel market," said Leo Gerard, president of USWA International.

(snip)

ISG says its growth will continue. In August, the company announced it will expand its Cleveland Works plant with a hot-dipping line to make specialty steel for automakers, part of ISG's business that also produces steel for food cans, construction and other uses... "It's not like the steel industry is suddenly hiring people. We only replace through attrition," said U.S. Steel spokesman John Armstrong.

More..
http://www.dailybulletin.com/Stories/0,1413,203~21482~2562166,00.html#

[goodboy]

1. bush really screwed these guys when he flip-flopped on steel tariffs

I'm from Martins ferry ohio, near where Wheeling/Pittsburgh Steel is located...those poor bastards are in financial ruin, but sadly many of them are bush supporters (I should also say that Belmont co still went for Kerry)

[ohio_liberal]

4. Hey neighbor!

I'm from Martins Ferry too :hi:

[goodboy]

6. NO F-ing way!

DId you go to MFHS?

[ohio_liberal]

7. Way!

Graduated MFHS in 1986. :)

[goodboy]

8. Well, I only went there for my first two years and then I went to

Interlochen Arts Academy...

I graduated in 1997, but I betcha we know a lot of the same people.

[ohio_liberal]

9. I'm sure we do

Small town and all that. There's another gal from MF here too but I don't think she shows up too often. There's quite a few people from the Valley on DailyKos too.

[goodboy]

10. I think I know who you're talking about...she was two years behind

me...I can't remember her name right now.

[ohio_liberal]

11. Must be a 4th?

The one I'm talking about is a few years older than me. Wow, 4 people from Martins Ferry on DU?!?!

[democratreformed]

2. This is another one of those stories that just not match reality.

Cheaper steel?!?!? Where the hell is it?!?! Our business relies heavily on steel. Our largest vendor is the local steel supplier. Our other largest vendors are companies that also use steel in their products.

Three years ago, I could buy 3/16 plate steel for 18 cents a pound. Today, it is closer to 60 cents. Wednesday, I priced 3/16 AR (abrasion resisting) plate for $1.65 per pound!!! We recently requoted a large grain bin that we had originally priced two years ago. The cost of the bin (steel) itself has gone up 67% in two years!

Cheaper steel is the biggest joke I have heard in a while.

[phantom power]

3. Is this a consequence of Asian demand?

Hard for supply to get ahead of demand, with China's manufacturing and construction growing so fast.

[democratreformed]

5. That's the way it was explained to me at one point.

My steel supplier said the market is run on scrap metal. China, particularly, is buying up most of our scrap metal for more than our steel makers can afford to pay. I keep waiting for the prices to level out and quit jumping - but it hasn't happened yet.

So, I guess there's hope? Maybe we will see the cheaper steel eventually? I won't hold my breath.

[Lithos]

12. Your supplier is correct

Also there is not as much "dumping" of steel into the US markets by other countries just to develop an industry now that China and Asia are in a growth spurt and able to utilize their capacity.

L-

[TexasBushwhacker]

13. I'm glad some steel workers are going back to work but

"Workers like Eddie Reust, 50, of Cleveland, have experienced the rarity of being hired by a U.S. steelmaker even as the industry is shrinking. Some 12,000 ISG employees got their jobs after the company bought bankrupt steelmakers, shed retiree costs and consolidated several expensive operations into a few cost-effective ones."

I have to wonder, what happened to those retirees whose costs were "shed"?

[Ima]

14. China

is buying up most all building materials. That's why the prices are high.