Cleveland Cliffs and United Steelworkers reach tentative agreement
CLEVELAND, OH — The Cleveland-Cliffs and United Steelworkers (USW) have reached a tentative agreement.
The announcement came on Sunday that they have jointly agreed for a new 4-year labor contract that is effective as of October 1.
Lourenco Goncalves, the Cleveland Cliffs President and CEO stated, “we are pleased to reach a new labor contract that is fair and equitable to both parties, and provides cliffs a competitive cost structure for future success. This agreement once again reinforces that we have more in common with the USW than we have differences and we look forward to continuing our strong partnership.”
This new contract will cover approximately 1,800 USW-represented workers at Cliffs’ Tilden and Empire Mines in Michigan, and its United Taconite and Hibbing Taconite mines in Minnesota.
“Cliffs acknowledges the sacrifices of our members during recent tough times and now that the industry is prospering, looks to give its dedicated workforce its fair share,” said USW International President Leo W. Gerard. “Cleveland Cliffs is fundamental part of the steel industry, and we congratulate them for bargaining seriously to reach a fair agreement.”
The agreement is pending ratification by USW local union memberships.
No additional details will be released at this time pending ratification.