![]() Miller is working to lobby the Trump administration to follow the precedent of former Republican President George W. Since then, NLMK has invested around $1 billion in its U.S. firm that went bankrupt in 1992 and was subsequently owned by British and Swiss companies before the Russians bought in back in 2006. The Farrell mill was originally owned by a U.S. Mercer County had 5.5 percent unemployment in December - above the state rate of 4.8 percent and the national rate of 4.1 percent. As of June 2017, there were around 11,000 steel jobs in Pennsylvania, 2 percent of the state’s 546,000 manufacturing jobs. The town’s population of under 5,000 is less than a third of what it was in 1920. Its blast furnace was sold for scrap and instead of producing steel, its current crop of workers heat 25-ton imported steel slabs to a glowing-orange temperature of 2,400 degrees fahrenheit (1,316 Celsius) before rolling them down in some cases to as thick as a few sheets of paper.Īmid blasts of steam, intense heat, dirt and noise, the mill’s 600 union-represented workers earn up to $27 per hour, a solid middle-class wage.įarrell can ill afford to lose its NLMK steel jobs. The mill owned by NLMK has existed since the beginning of the 20th century, but experienced two lengthy shutdowns and mass layoffs in the 1990s. The area was America’s steel heartland, with mills dotting the landscape until the industry’s decline began in the 1970s because of an increase in global competition. Mercer County has a poverty rate that is nearly double the national average. The mill is the largest employer in Farrell and accounts for more than one fifth of the town’s tax base. But for those like NLMK, which is reliant on imported raw materials, they could prove catastrophic. The tariffs are good for steel producers that melt and produce their own steel. “This policy is picking winners and losers and unfortunately, we are the losers.” “The workers here in Farrell are on the front line,” Miller said. steel jobs with sweeping tariffs, Trump will also kill off some steel jobs. Some steel executives such as Miller say this is the ultimate irony: by acting ostensibly to protect U.S. On Thursday, Trump pressed ahead with the imposition of 25 percent tariffs on steel imports and 10 percent for aluminum. Trump has stood by the tariffs, despite resistance from his fellow Republicans and other countries, which have vowed to respond with levies of their own. Miller said tariffs will also force NLMK to shelve planned $600 million investments in plants in Pennsylvania and Indiana, around $400 million of which was earmarked for upgrading antiquated equipment at its Farrell plant. Manufacturers that need steel employ about 6.5 million people each year and the construction industry 6.3 million. steel industry employed about 147,000 people in 2015, according to the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic analysis. unit, said if his company’s customers refuse to accept a 25 percent price hike as a result of the tariffs, nearly 1,200 workers could eventually lose their jobs - and the ones in Farrell would be the first to go when supplies of imported slabs run out. steel producers.īob Miller, Chief Executive Officer of NLMK’s U.S. The slabs that the mill rolls into sheets for customers including Caterpillar Inc CAT.N, Deere & Co DE.N Harley Davidson Inc HOG.N and Home Depot Inc HD.N, are almost impossible to acquire from U.S. subsidiary which imports around 2 million tons of steel slabs annually from its Russian parent company. GRAPHIC: tmsnrt.rs/2oPeo1zīut Lang is one of around 780 workers at the Novolipetsk Steel PAO (NLMK) NLMK.MM mill, NLMK's U.S. Steel said it would restart one of two idled blast furnaces at an Illinois steel plant, creating up to 500 jobs.Īmerica is the world's largest steel importer, buying about 35 million tons in 2017. Steel Corp X.N and AK Steel Holding Corp AKS.N - seen as winners thanks to the president's actions - have lauded Trump's tariff on imported steel. Trump is scheduled to visit Moon Township about 60 miles southwest of Farrell on Saturday to support the Republican candidate and he is expected to be warmly received in an area he also won handily in 2016. ![]() House of Representatives seat next Tuesday. Some Republican strategists said Trump’s tariffs appeared partly to be timed to sway voters in Pennsylvania steel country, where a special election is being held for a U.S. The county voted for then-Republican candidate Trump by more than 24 points in the 2016 U.S. I voted for Trump because I thought he’d straighten things out, not do something like this,” said Lang, 59, a third-generation steelworker, whose son also works at the same steel mill in Farrell in western Pennsylvania’s Mercer County. Mick Lang looks over the steel slab line at the Novolipetsk Steel PAO steel mill in Farrell, Pennsylvania, U.S., March 9, 2018.
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