WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today issued the following statement on Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) resuming contract negotiations with United Steelworkers (USW).
“The resumed negotiations between ATI and USW mean we are one step closer to sending Ohio steelworkers back to work,” said Brown. “Last week, I stood with locked-out workers in Louisville who’ve been out of work for months. When workers are locked out of their job, it is difficult – if not impossible – for their families to recover from the wages they lose while out of work. I hope the negotiations continue to be constructive and both parties reach an agreement worthy of the men and women of our nation’s steel industry.”
Brown, along with U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Edward Markey (D-MA), Christopher Murphy (D-CT), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), wrote to ATI urging CEO Richard Harshman to work with USW to reach an agreement and end the lockout. He also sent a letter to ATI management in December 2015 calling on the company to end the five-month lockout.
The contract between ATI and USW ended on June 30, 2015 and the parties have not reached an agreement to renew the contract. ATI locked out employees at facilities in Ohio, Oregon, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania.
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