Contract: Roxanne Brown (202) 778-3304, rbrown@usw.org
(PITTSBURGH) – The United Steelworkers (USW) today applauded the successful efforts of USW Local 689 to incorporate language in the omnibus funding measure passed by Congress to maintain decontamination and decommissioning (D&D) activities at the Department of Energy (DOE) former uranium enrichment site in Piketon, Ohio.
Since the plant ceased enriching uranium in 2001, more than 800 men and women of USW Local 689 have been performing the needed cleanup of this nuclear legacy so the site can be reindustrialized and used for economic development.
"Our union worked with the Ohio delegation and the administration to avoid layoffs at the Piketon site in the fall through a temporary solution included in the continuing resolution Congress passed in September,” said USW International President Leo W. Gerard. “I applaud Local Union 689 for their tireless work on this spending package to prevent the loss of over 500 USW jobs at Piketon.”
"This was a significant effort for Local 689," said USW International Vice President Carol Landry. "Had this funding not been secured, our members at Piketon would have faced the devastation of pending layoffs a week before Christmas."
"The leadership shown by Local 689 and its president Herman Potter during this effort should be commended," said USW District 1 Director Dave McCall. "This facility is located in a county in Ohio with the state's second highest unemployment rate. This funding prevents the loss of hundreds of highly skilled, family-supporting jobs."
"We are very happy with this outcome," said USW Local 689 President Herman Potter. "However, we will continue to call on Congress and the administration to provide the stable, long-term funding needed to ensure safe operations and continued progress toward the future reindustrialization of the site."
The USW represents 850,000 workers in North America employed in many industries that include metals, rubber, chemicals, paper, oil refining and the service and public sectors. For more information: http://www.usw.org/.
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