U.S. Steel reaches collective agreement with Hamilton, Ont., workers
by Canadian Manufacturing Staff
Employees at U.S. Steel Canada's Hamilton Works facility in Hamilton, Ont., have ratified new collective agreement
HAMILTON, Ont.—Employees at U.S. Steel Canada, Inc.’s Hamilton Works facility in Hamilton, Ont., have ratified a new collective agreement with the company.
The agreement, which is good through March 31, 2017, was reached as the company negotiates a court-supervised plan after filing for creditor protection last month.
The collective agreement covers about 600 employees at the steel mill.
“The ratification of a new collective bargaining agreement covering employees at Hamilton Works sends a positive signal to customers who rely on high quality steel products produced at U. S. Steel Canada,” company president and general manager Michael McQuade said in a statement.
“Having the stability of a collective agreement … will allow the company to focus on continuing discussions with stakeholders to implement a comprehensive operational and financial restructuring plan.”
Earlier this month, the company received court approval for a $185-million “debtor-in-possession” loan from its American parent company, U.S. Steel Corp., to keep the Canadian unit running through next year.
U.S. Steel Canada said it hopes to sell both its Ontario operations, Hamilton Works and Lake Erie Works, in Nanticoke, Ont., by October 2015.
The former Stelco Inc., which U.S. Steel bought in 2007, has recorded a operating losses in each of the past five years for an aggregate loss of about $2.4 billion since 2009.
