USW says board of arbitration ‘misses the mark’ in U.S. Steel, Nippon Steel deal

The United Steelworkers said in a letter to its members: “We received the board of arbitration’s decision over our grievances against U.S. Steel (X), and we strenuously disagree with the result. The arbitrators accepted at face-value Nippon Steel’s (NPSCY) statement that it would assume the Basic Labor Agreement, despite the obvious means by which it’s using its North American holding company to insulate itself from our contracts. Nippon’s commitment to our facilities and jobs remains as uncertain as ever, and executives in Tokyo can still change U.S. Steel’s business plans and wipe them away at any moment. We’re clearly disappointed with the decision, but it does nothing to change our opposition to the deal or our resolve to fight for our jobs and communities that hang in the balance in this transaction… Unless the owner of USS makes iron-clad, enforceable commitments to maintain blast furnace operations well into the future, our country will lose its capacity to make much of what we need for the automotive industry, bridges and other infrastructure and military operations. As we know, these products cannot be made in electric arc furnaces like Big River. The greedy USS executives driving this deal have the luxury of taking golden parachutes, and shareholders can obviously sell their stock at a huge profit… Our solidarity is as important now as ever. Please watch for further updates as we have more information to share.”