ATI Negotiations 2020: Steel Industry Milestones

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We are Steel Strong. We have a long and storied history of uniting to make better lives for ourselves and our families. For more than 75 years, we’ve fought to improve our wages, working conditions and communities.

In the 1930s workers organized at what was then Allegheny Ludlum to ensure their work hours were safe and they were fairly compensated for their hard work.

These pioneers of our movement also laid a foundation for future generations. Since then we have remained steadfast in our commitment to respecting our past and building a secure future.

We fought for economic security and safer working environments. We sacrificed when times were tough to save our jobs and defend our communities. And we fought for fair trade, filing more than 100 trade cases in the past two decades against illegal tactics like dumping and subsidies.

With our solidarity and unity, we fended off regressive demands.

213 Days of Solidarity

In the summer of 2015, ATI decided to pick a fight with us, ultimately locking 2,200 union members out of our jobs.

The company opened negotiations with a jaw-dropping list of demands that included 145 deep and permanent concessions that would have erased decades of progress, significantly increased health care costs for retirees, and created an unacceptable and divisive two-tier benefit system designed to divide us.

We, along with our families and communities, stayed strong and united throughout the six-month lockout: on our picket lines, in our communities and at the bargaining table.

Our strength and solidarity paid off with a fair contract that contains virtually none of the drastic concessions ATI sought to impose.

These are jobs worth fighting for, and we did just that.

Together we sent a strong message to ATI: We are steel strong!

Steel Industry Milestones

1937: Steelworkers in Pennsylvania, many of whom were immigrants, struck against Allegheny Ludlum and successfully won recognition of their union within hours. The first contract established an eight-hour day, a 40-hour week, vacation days, and overtime pay.

1942: The Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC) members at Allegheny Ludlum became founding members of the United Steelworkers of America (USWA) and nominated Phil Murray for President at the founding convention.

1949: Workers in Brackenridge and Leechburg struck for two weeks and won a pension and insurance program.

1953: Lab workers in Brackenridge and nearby facilities won unionizing victory.

1959: After a 116-day, industry-wide strike, Steelworkers won cost-of-living allowance and tremendously improved health insurance and pension.

1900s: The union became stronger when workers unionized in New Bedford, Mass., and Waterbury, Conn. Our numbers grew when the company purchased Jessop Steel’s facilities in Washington, Pa., Oremet in Albany, Ore. and Teledyne facilities in Lockport, N.Y. and Latrobe, Pa.

1994: Union members went on strike for 69 days and won substantial wage increases, pensions, profit-sharing, and improvements in health insurance. The Bargaining Committee also negotiated the creation of the Institute for Career Development (ICD) as a joint initiative to provide USW members educational services funded by the company.

2003: Office and technical workers at the Brackenridge mill, the Natrona Heights tech center and other sites declared organizing victory and joined the union.

2004: The union further expanded when the company purchased the Louisville, Ohio and Midland, Pa facilities.

2008: The USW successfully negotiated a $1.2 billion investment at the Brackenridge, Pa. facility to benefit the community and future workers.

2014: The USW and ATI filed steel dumping complaints that resulted in a U.S. Department of Commerce ruling that seven countries were selling or dumping grain-oriented electrical steel in the U.S. market at unfairly low prices.

2015: ATI illegally locked out more than 2,200 USW members at 12 plants in six states.

2016: We stood strong and united to defend jobs worth fighting for, fending off demands for concessions and negotiating a fair contract.

Locals Bargaining in 2020

Local 134L
Waterbury, Conn.

Local 1046
Louisville, Ohio

Local 1138
Vandergrift, Pa.

Local 1138 Unit 1
Brackenridge, Pa.
Natrona Heights, Pa.
Vandergrift, Pa.

Local 1138 Unit 6
Latrobe, Pa.

Local 1196
Brackenridge, Pa.

Local 1196 Unit 2
Natrona Heights, Pa.
Brackenridge, Pa.

Local 1357
New Bedford, Mass.

Local 7139
Washington, Pa.

Local 7150
Albany, Ore.

Local 9436
Lockport, N.Y.