Steel Mills

Arbitration board sides with USS over USW on Nippon deal

September 25, 2024

A board of arbitration has ruled in favor of U.S Steel in a dispute with the United Steelworkers (USW) union regarding Nippon Steel’s more than $14-billion proposed acquisition of the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker.

The board, jointly selected by USS and USW, ruled U.S. Steel has satisfied each of the conditions of the successorship clause of its Basic Labor Agreement (BLA) with the union.

Further, the board said that no further action is necessary under the BLA to close the pending transaction between U.S. Steel and Tokyo-based Nippon.

Recall that the deal was first announced last December. Since then, there has been pushback from the union and various politicians, including President Biden and current Democratic and Republican presidential nominees, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.

The deal still faces US government regulatory hurdles. This includes a critical national security review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). Earlier this month, that decision was pushed back until after the election.

U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel still hope to close the transaction by the end of this year.

USS cheers

The company said the Board of Arbitration cited Nippon Steel’s written commitments in support of its decision.

These include Nippon’s pledge to invest no fewer than $1.4 billion in USW-represented facilities, not to conduct layoffs or plant closings during the BLA’s term, and to safeguard the best interests of U.S. Steel in trade matters.

“With the arbitration process now behind us, we look forward to moving ahead with our pending transaction with Nippon Steel,” David Burritt, USS president and CEO, said in a statement on Wednesday.

He noted that with the commitments from Nippon, “We will protect and grow U.S. Steel for the benefit of our employees, communities and customers.”

USW jeers

The union said it “strenuously disagreed” with the decision.

“The arbitrators accepted at face-value Nippon Steel’s statement that it would assume the Basic Labor Agreement, despite the obvious means by which it’s using its North American holding company to insulate itself from our contracts,” USW said in a statement on Wednesday.

The statement was issued by Mike Millsap, USW District 7 director and chairman of the negotiating committee, and USW International President David McCall.

The two commented that Nippon’s commitment to USW facilities and jobs “remains as uncertain as ever.”

While disappointed, they said, “It does nothing to change our opposition to the deal or our resolve to fight for our jobs and communities that hang in the balance in this transaction.”

The union said the owner of USS needs to make “iron-clad, enforceable commitments to maintain blast furnace operations well into the future.” Otherwise, “Our country will lose its capacity to make much of what we need for the automotive industry, bridges, and other infrastructure and military operations.”

The union added that these products cannot be made in EAFs like at USS’ Big River Steel in Osceola, Ark.

Ethan Bernard

Ethan Bernard is managing editor for Steel Market Update. He previously worked for American Metal Market as a copy editor in the New York office for two years, starting in 2008. Later, he copy edited AMM’s monthly magazine on a freelance basis from 2015 until 2017. With experience in financial copywriting and textbook publishing, he holds a BA in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley, and an MFA. in Creative Writing from New York University. He can be reached at ethan@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7871.