Steelworkers ‘shocked’ by news of potential U.S. Steel sale
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Steelworkers in northwest Indiana were shocked by the recent announcement that Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel had not only rejected a buyout offer but also is exploring a possible sale.
Mike Millsap, District 7 director for the United Steelworkers, told our partners at The Times of Northwest Indiana that the union’s contract with the steelmaker has succession clauses designed to preserve jobs, pay and benefits.
Millsap said there was no forewarning of the announcement aside from a communication sent from U.S. Steel CEO David Burritt, but not everyone has the app to receive such a notification.
U.S. Steel announced Sunday that it had rejected an unsolicited cash and stock offer from Cleveland-Cliffs Inc., which also has an Indiana presence, to acquire U.S. Steel’s outstanding shares valued at $7.3 billion. But the company said it was “evaluating strategic alternatives” after receiving multiple unsolicited proposals.
Since then, Pittsburgh-based Esmark has made an all-cash officer to acquire U.S. Steel for $7.8 billion. The Times also reports that ArcelorMittal, which sold its Indiana properties to Cleveland-Cliffs as part of a $1.4 billion deal, is considering a bid.
Millsap told the publication the union has been concerned about the direction U.S. Steel is going.
“They’re making big investments in Big River down in Arkansas and haven’t been making investments in the blast furnaces here,” he said. “We don’t know where they’re going with that but we see what they’re doing now.”
But Millsap said if a sale is announced, the potential buyer would be bound to the current contract negotiated by U.S. Steel or would have to negotiate a new one before the sale is finalized.
“We have absolutely very strong, unbreakable successorship language for whoever ends up buying it, whether that’s U.S. Steel or parts of the company,” he said. “They would have to hire the employees. Healthcare and retirement would be protected.”
U.S. Steel employs about 4,000 workers in Indiana at multiple plants, including at the Gary Works, its largest plant. Cleveland-Cliffs has about 7,000 employees in northwest Indiana.
You can read the full story from The Times of Northwest Indiana’s Joseph S. Pete by clicking here.
Joseph will appear on this weekend’s edition of Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick to talk more about the potential sale.