State to investigate U.S. Steel Košice lay-offs

On Monday, the representatives of U.S. Steel Košice (USS), the largest employer in eastern Slovakia, refused to appear at a parliamentary economy committee regarding the situation in their company. The steel producer is facing difficulties on the market with imports of Chinese steel, which are allegedly being sold at dumping prices. In 2013, in return for state subsidies, USS Košice guaranteed there will be no mass lay-offs within the next five years, while neither the company - nor a part of it - would be sold. Meanwhile, the company has been making 29 people redundant each month for several months now. Thirty would be considered a mass lay off. Even though the representatives of the company did not show up at the parliamentary committee meeting, according to the company's spokesperson Ján Bača, the MPs are welcomed to come to Košice themselves.