GRANITE City – U.S. Steel has announced that approximately 1,000 employees will receive Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notices. This includes 400 workers whose employment was “temporarily” suspended in September without advance notice.
State Representative Amy Elik (R- Alton) statement
” I am disgusted and saddened to hear U.S. Steel’s plans to potentially layoff up to 1,000 employees in Madison County. Granite City employees and their families have provided loyal, skilled labor to the steel industry for decades, and U.S. Steel is pulling the rug out from under them. U.S. Steel should be doing everything it can to keep the Granite City steel mill operating at capacity, and I don’t see the company making that effort. I am willing to work with anyone to help keep these jobs in Granite City. My heart goes out to all the workers and families impacted, especially during the Holiday season. I join in the sadness and anger of the city of Granite City and the employees who have dedicated their livelihoods to the steel industry.
I encourage employees impacted by this layoff to contact the Southwestern Illinois workNET Center located in Wood River at 618-296-4301 to receive job search assistance and potential training opportunities. If my office can be of assistance, please contact my district office in Alton at 618-433-8046.”
State Senator Erica Harriss statement
“The news of the closures and layoffs is devastating for our steelworkers, our families, and our entire community. As a granddaughter of a US Steelworker, I understand that these aren’t just jobs lost, but these are livelihoods and lives torn apart. The excuses for the closures will offer little comfort to the people who rely on these good-paying jobs to support their families.
“My staff and I are in contact with state, federal, and local resources to ensure we are in the best position to help constituents navigate the uncertain road ahead.
“Our community helped build this company over generations. US Steel is turning its back on our workers, our community, and our state. I stand with the hard-working people of our district and will do everything I can to support our families in the days and months ahead.”
U.S. Representative (IL-13) Nikk Budzinski statement
“Two months ago, U.S. Steel handed out pink slips to 400 workers as they blamed the United Auto Workers strike for reduced steel demand. Today, with strong steel prices and operations resumed at the Big Three automakers, U.S. Steel is planning to make these layoffs permanent while putting another 600 jobs on the chopping block. It’s clear that these layoffs were never about the market and always about targeting organized workers. U.S. Steel must be held accountable.
“As U.S. Steelworks closes up their union-represented shop in Granite City and move operations to a so-called “right-to-work” state, it’s clear that the company’s executives are more concerned with lining their own pockets than they are with the livelihoods of the workers who have built their company for generations. I will continue to closely monitor U.S. Steel’s Strategic Alternative Review Process as we maintain hopes that an American-owned company with strong labor relations can step in to better serve our highly skilled workers and the Granite City community.”
” Too often, companies close down without giving their workers or the broader community proper notice. Workers and their families deserve better than a last-minute email letting them know they’re losing their job. While the WARN Act, established in 1988, requires certain companies to provide full-time employees with WARN notices in some circumstances, in too many cases, existing law doesn’t apply, or companies fail to follow the rules, and workers get left behind”
