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Since I work as a millwright in a steel mill, this issue is up close and personal. Yes, the American steel mills have gone to court and to the President, and we have won some tariffs against the dumping of the European and Chinese steel producers.From the article you linked to:Maybe trade practices unfair to U.S. companies?
Steel dumping blamed for Iron Range layoffs Minnesota Public Radio News
From the Article:
The closing of plants and mills comes from a glut of steel supplies and the steady decline of prices over the last few months.
Following news of the most recent plant closing, Rep. Jason Metsa, DFL-Virginia, blamed the low prices on "foreign countries for dumping state-subsidized steel on American shores." U.S. Steel officials have also pointed to illegal trade practices by Chinese companies.
Dumping is a frowned upon international trade practice, said Tony Barrett, a professor of economics at the College of St. Scholastica. It's when a company sells steel abroad for cheaper than the cost to produce it because they don't need to make the same level of profits as American steel companies.
"If you have a state-owned steel company in China, their priorities are more staying in operation, keeping employment high, keeping their workers happy," Barrett said. "They don't need to make the profits that a U.S. Steel company would have to — we can't do it in this country because we have stockholders that wouldn't tolerate it."
Barrett said while it's almost certain that foreign companies are dumping steel in the U.S. market, the process for challenging the practice is long and complex.
EDIT: Not directly related to the OP, but the reason is probably the same since it's an ongoing situation.
"Barrett said while it's almost certain that foreign companies are dumping steel in the U.S. market, the process for challenging the practice is long and complex.
"A company like U.S. Steel would have to go to court at the Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission and claim they've been materially harmed by illegally dumped steel," Barrett said."It's time consuming to do."
So, has US Steel gone to Court yet?
Yo, yes folks, the Economy is Booming!!! Go Obama? Maybe straight to Hell!!!
US Steel idling Alabama mill; about 1,100 jobs affected
Aug. 17, 2015 3:39 PM EDT
FAIRFIELD, Ala. (AP) — U.S. Steel Corp. said Monday that it will close its Fairfield Works mill, one of the largest remaining pieces from Birmingham's years as a Southern steel-making giant.
The decision will affect about 1,100 workers at the roughly century-old plant, company spokeswoman Sarah Cassella said. It was unclear whether employees might be able to move to other jobs within the Pittsburgh-based company.
An adjoining plant that employs about 700 people will continue making steel pipe, the company said, and construction of an electric arc furnace will continue on the property. An associated galvanizing operation will keep operating in Jackson, Mississippi, U.S. Steel said.
But the blast furnace and other operations at Fairfield Works will close around Nov. 17.
"Any time you're talking about a major layoff, it's no good news at all," Fairfield Mayor Kenneth Coachman said.
The plant is just outside the city limits of its namesake town, but Coachman said many workers still live in Fairfield.
"It will be a tremendous loss to them and their families," he said.
In a statement from U.S. Steel, CEO Mario Longhi said the shutdown was needed to improve the efficiency and cost structure of the company's rolled-steel segment.
"We have made some difficult decisions over the last year as part of our portfolio optimization," Longhi said.
U.S. Steel announced temporary shutdowns earlier this year at two facilities in Minnesota, resulting in more than 1,000 layoffs. The domestic steel industry has been buffeted for years by low prices and foreign imports.
The United Steelworkers blamed the decision on unfair foreign competition.
"In particular, China has repeatedly violated international trade rules to bolster its state-owned industry while dumping its products into our market, and American workers have already paid the price," union president Leo W. Gerard said in a statement.
Located just west of Alabama's largest city, Fairfield Works is a major part of Birmingham's past as a steel-producing city, the so-called "Pittsburgh of the South."
The Birmingham suburb of Fairfield was a planned company town that grew up around the mill in the early 1900s, according to the Encyclopedia of Alabama. More than 40,000 people were employed at Fairfield Works making steel during World War II, and about 11,000 people now live in Fairfield.
The region's steel industry began a slow decline about 50 years ago, and medical and financial industries now dominate Birmingham's economy.
"GTP"
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damn, you're stupid.
