A month after news broke that 900 jobs might be lost at U.S. Steel in Granite City -- if an outside firm buys the plant and repurposes it -- the head of the union told KMOX that they're still fighting.
Dan Simmons of United Steelworkers 1899 said he's still fighting the proposed buyout of the plant by Suncoke to put in all new equipment that would make a different kind of steel. He said he recently met with the CEOs of U.S. Steel and Suncoke.
"It's still our position that the best outcome for Granite City and its workers would be if we were able to get U.S. Steel to make that commitment and make that investment," Simmons said. "We're still not convinced it isn't the right move, and no one from U.S. Steel has convinced me why they aren't making this investment themselves."
Simmons said U.S. Steel seems to be afraid there could be a glut of steel on the market in two years, which is why they're considering the drastic change now.