Cleveland-Cliffs to Idle Weirton Tinplate Facility Following Unfavorable ITC (Tariffs) Ruling

[mountaineer]

Cleveland-Cliffs to Idle Weirton Tinplate Facility Following Unfavorable ITC Ruling
by: Taylor Long   
Posted: Feb 15, 2024 / 06:40 AM EST   
Updated: Feb 15, 2024 / 07:20 AM EST   

WEIRTON, W.Va. (WTRF) — According to a recent press release from Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. it was announced Thursday morning that it will be indefinitely idling its tinplate production plant located in Weirton, West Virginia in April 2024.

The need to idle the Weirton plant is a direct result of the unanimous decision issued by all four members of the International Trade Commission (ITC) negating the implementation of anti-dumping and countervailing duties on tin mill products calculated by the Department of Commerce.

A WARN notice is being issued today to approximately 900 impacted employees. These employees will be provided relocation opportunities to work at other Cliffs’ facilities and/or severance packages.

In January 2023, Cleveland-Cliffs and co-petitioners the United Steelworkers (USW) filed antidumping and countervailing duty petitions related to unfairly traded tin and chromium coated sheet steel products.

After finding evidence of dumping and subsidization, on January 5, 2024, the Department of Commerce announced duties on four countries, including Canada, China, Germany and South Korea. However, on February 6, 2024, the ITC unanimously rejected these tariffs. ...

I mentioned this ITC decision on another thread. I guess it was just a matter of time until it put people out of work. Weirton Steel in its heyday employed 13,000; now it looks like the final 900 will be heading to the unemployment office.

[mountaineer]

Major Weirton employer, Cleveland-Cliffs, announces plant idling and about 900 job losses
By Brad McElhinny
February 15, 2024 - 8:48 am

A tinplate production plant in Weirton will idle in April, resulting in potential job losses for 900 workers, Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. announced today.

Affected employees will be provided relocation opportunities to work at other Cliffs’ facilities and/or severance packages, the company said.

Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest flat-rolled steel producer in North America. The tin produced in Weirton has been used to produce food packaging and other containers.

The plant in Weirton got caught up in the unforgiving churn of the international market economy. The company cited an earlier unanimous decision issued by the International Trade Commission negating the implementation of anti-dumping and countervailing duties on tin mill products calculated by the Department of Commerce. ...

Cleveland-Cliffs and the United Steelworkers had accused other countries of dumping their own tin at unfair market value, undercutting domestic production. The International Trade Commission concluded last week that the effect of lower prices from international producers was negligible.
Mark Glyptis

“It’s absolutely ridiculous. ITC betrayed America. There isn’t any question whatsoever, none at all, that these companies are dumping their products onto our marketplace,” Mark Glyptis, president of  Local 2911 United Steelworkers Union in Weirton, said in an interview with MetroNews. ...

Congressman Alex Mooney, R-W.Va., described the impending closure as “an absolute blow to our hardworking West Virginia steelworkers.” The plant is in the district that Mooney is elected to represent in Congress.

“I talked with the Department of Commerce and urged them to crack down on unfair foreign competition and save these jobs. The Department of Commerce sided with us, but the globalist, Democrat led International Trade Commission sided with the cheap foreign competitors and as a result another American plant was closed,” Mooney stated today. ...

WV Metro News