Steelworkers announce pact with ArcelorMittal USA

The United Steelworkers have announced a tentative agreement on a new three-year contract with ArcelorMittal USA covering 14,000 workers, including 330 at the Minorca Mine outside Virginia, Minn. Negotiations were held in Pittsburgh.

The union told members Saturday that they would be getting details soon, as well as dates and locations of informational meetings before a ratification vote. Officials said the current contract, which expired Sept. 1, will be extended until then.

The statement said retiree health care was an important issue; union officials believe they have negotiated a framework that will protect current and future retirees. The union said it won wage increases and improved health care, rejected management's calls for a two-tier wage and pension system and maintained seniority rights and protections against the use of outside contractors.

"After surviving the worst economic crisis in generations, our committee came to Pittsburgh seeking to improve the long-term viability and sustainability of the company and our jobs," said David McCall, who led the union's negotiations.

Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal is the largest taconite and steel producer in the United States. Labor contracts expired Sept. 1, but workers agreed to continue working in the hopes of working out disagreements about pensions and health-care costs. A spokeswoman for the Minorca Mine didn't return calls or messages for comment Saturday.

At U.S. Steel, labor talks last week resulted in a tentative agreement on a three-year contract. That agreement, which still must be voted on by union members, would cover 15,000 workers nationwide, including about 1,350 workers at USS Keetac in Keewatin, Minn., and USS Minntac in Mountain Iron, Minn.

And talks will resume in October for workers at Hibbing Taconite, United Taconite and other facilities owned by Cliffs Natural Resources. The contract between United Steelworkers and Cliffs expired Sept. 1, but the two sides agreed to extend the contract in 48-hour increments. Recent talks broke off in Pittsburgh and will resume Oct. 8 in Duluth, the United Steelworkers said. Cliffs has 1,090 union workers in Minnesota and another 1,330 in Michigan affected by the negotiations.