Market Segment
August 22, 2026
USW: USS, union “far apart” on key issues ahead of Sept. 1 deadline
Written by Michael Cowden
The United Steelworkers (USW) union remains “far apart” from U.S. Steel on issues that matter most to its members.
Those top issues are health care, wages, retirement, and commitments to invest in union-represented facilities, the USW said in an update to members on Saturday.
Offers from the steelmaker to date “would take us backwards,” the union alleged.
The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker did not respond to a request for comment before this article was published on Saturday night.
The USW again singled out health care as a sticking point.
“USS still has their unacceptable health care proposal on the table,” the union said. “We’ve made it clear that their cost-shifting scheme/dramatic benefits cuts are a non-starter.”
It also criticized U.S. Steel for offering contract language that included “no increases” to worker pensions.
Labor contracts between U.S. Steel and the USW expire on Sept. 1, as do contracts between Cleveland-Cliffs and the union.
All of U.S. Steel’s integrated mills, mines, and pelletizing operations in the US are represented by the USW. The company’s EAF sheet mill in Arkansas, Big River Steel, is non-union.
