Lawmakers Urge Steel Company to Return 2,200 Workers to Their Jobs
Contact: R.J. Hufnagel, (412) 562-2450, rhufnagel@usw.org
PITTSBURGH (Jan. 22) – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and five other Senators sent a letter this week to Richard Harshman, CEO of Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI), calling on the specialty steelmaker to bargain a fair contract with members of the United Steelworkers (USW) union who have been illegally locked out of their jobs since Aug. 15.
Sen. Brown, along with other elected officials, union members and supporters from across Ohio, also joined members of USW Local 1046 on the picket line this morning outside the ATI plant in Louisville, Ohio.
“We are particularly concerned that ATI refuses to negotiate in good faith while so many families’ livelihoods are at stake,” the letter read. “We believe that it is in the best interest of our constituents and ATI to reach a fair agreement that returns workers to their jobs.”
Joining Sen. Brown in signing the letter were Senators Elizabeth Warren and Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts, Senators Richard Blumenthal and Christopher Murphy of Connecticut, and Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon.
In August 2015, Pittsburgh-based ATI illegally locked out 2,200 USW members at 12 plants in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Oregon and Pennsylvania, after demanding that workers vote to accept a “last, best and final” contract offer that contained deep cuts in pay and benefits for workers and retirees.
Click Here for a copy of the Senators’ letter.
The USW represents 850,000 workers in North America employed in many industries that include metals, rubber, chemicals, paper, oil refining and the service and public sectors. For more information: http://www.usw.org/. For more information on USW bargaining with ATI: http://www.usw.org/act/campaigns/ati-bargaining.
# # #