Contact: Ben Davis: bdavis@usw.org, 412-562-2501
R.J. Hufnagel: rhufnagel@usw.org, 412-562-2450
PITTSBURGH (Nov. 4) — The United Steelworkers (USW) union today joined representatives of 17 other steel-producing unions from 10 countries in supporting a declaration calling on their governments to take action against “industrial destruction” that is eroding good jobs, working conditions, bargaining rights and environmental conditions around the world.
The declaration, which passed with unanimous support from the members of the IndustriALL Base Metals Steering Committee meeting in Pittsburgh, specifically targeted China’s “unfair and illegal trading practices” which have had “devastating effects on steelmaking communities and the environment.”
The USW is a founding member of IndustriALL, a worldwide labor federation established in 2012 that represents more than 50 million workers in 600 unions from 140 countries around the world. Union members from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and the United Kingdom participated in the Pittsburgh meeting.
“China’s overcapacity is affecting steelworkers across the globe,” said USW International Vice President Tom Conway, who serves as co-chair of the committee. “We can’t continue to ignore the problems that China is causing. They have the potential to doom the global steel industry.”
Those problems include China’s subsidizing an unchecked expansion of its steel industry, its dumping of steel products at below-market prices in the U.S. and elsewhere, and manipulating its currency to artificially reduce the cost of Chinese-made exports.
“Ignoring the impact of these decisions on workers and their industries while claiming to be a responsible global partner is unacceptable behaviour from any nation,” the declaration states.
For a copy of the full declaration, visit: usw.to/44.
The USW is the largest industrial union in North America, representing workers in a range of industries including metals, mining, rubber, paper and forestry, oil refining, health care, security, hotels, and municipal governments and agencies.
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