USW: Attention on USS Deal May Wane, But We’ll Still Be Here

Contact: Jess Kamm Broomell, jkamm@usw.org; Tony Montana, tmontana@usw.org

(Pittsburgh) – United Steelworkers (USW) International President David McCall issued the following statement after U.S. Steel announced it finalized its transaction with Japanese-owned Nippon Steel:

“Management at U.S. Steel and Nippon have since December 2023 aggressively promoted their deal, pouring vast amounts of resources into down-playing concerns regarding both the long-term future of USW members’ jobs and our national security while ensuring their sale remained in the public view.

“It finally found acceptance by President Donald Trump, who now, through his ‘golden share’ has assumed a startling degree of personal power over a corporation.

“As the sale concludes, it seems likely that attention will dissipate. U.S. Steel’s PR machine will power down, and the majority of elected officials will turn their attention elsewhere.

“However, our union will remain. We will continue watching, holding Nippon to its commitments. And we will use the most powerful tool workers have against global corporations: collective bargaining.

“Our current agreement expires in September 2026, and rest assured, if our job security, pensions, retiree health care or other hard-earned benefits are threatened, we are ready to respond with the full strength and solidarity of our membership.”

The USW represents 850,000 workers employed in metals, mining, pulp and paper, rubber, chemicals, glass, auto supply and the energy-producing industries, along with a growing number of workers in health care, public sector, higher education, tech and service occupations.

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