United States Steel Corp. said on 28 November 2023 that it would indefinitely idle the primary operations of its Granite City Works in Illinois, affecting about 1,000 workers. More than half of the workers were to be laid off from 28 January 2024, on top of about 400 already laid off in September, when the plant's last operating blast furnace was idled during the United Auto Workers strike. U.S. Steel said it would meet customer demand from its other iron and steelmaking plants and that rolling and finishing would continue at Granite City using slabs from elsewhere. The company said the move would balance melt capacity with its order book, but the decision drew criticism from the United Steelworkers union and from local politicians, who questioned whether the September shutdown had really been temporary.
Source: Metal Center News — https://www.metalcenternews.com/editorial/metal-industry-news/us-steel-to-indefinitely-idle-granite-city-works/45258
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (freely licensed).