PITTSBURGH – The United Steelworkers (USW) has announced that the union has reached a tentative agreement on a new, four-year contract on behalf of roughly 13,000 members of 13 local unions at U.S. Steel facilities featuring major economic and contract language improvements.
U.S. Steel represents workers at Granite City Steel. There are fears hundreds of workers could lose their jobs at Granite City Steel if U.S. Steel changes the operation through proposed repurposing and the company sells the blast furnaces. Granite City Mayor Mike Parkinson said recently that negotiations continue on many fronts with U.S. Steel about those proposed changes with hopes of preserving the jobs in the city.
USW District 7 Director Michael Millsap, who chaired the negotiations, said that the bargaining committee unanimously recommended the tentative agreement for ratification and thanked union members for standing together in solidarity for a fair contract.
USW District 9 Director Daniel Flippo, who served as negotiating committee secretary, said the tentative agreement features a lump sum bonus, improves wages, increases pensions, includes an additional holiday and bolsters existing health insurance provisions for workers and retirees without premiums.
