Trade unions reject mass layoffs at U.S. Steel

Slovakia's association of trade unions has rejected the large-scale layoffs announced in July by the management of Košice-based steel mill U.S. Steel, it was reported on Tuesday. A collective agreement is in force in the factory until March 31, 2020, which includes an article that the employer will not undertake mass layoffs of employees. The trade unions want to solidly fix this article into the next collective agreement as well, rejecting the claim that the company is overemployed. In order to improve the company's financial situation, however, U.S. Steel Košice wants to lay off 2,500 employees from the steelworks and its subsidiaries by the end of 2021. The company decided on the plan due to the bad situation on the steel market, brought about by the high number of steel imports coming from countries that do not have to comply with the rules in Europe and are not part of the European emissions trading scheme. As part of the measures being undertaken, the company has already introduced a reduced, four-day workweek and has shut down one of its blast furnaces.