United States Steel Corp (NYSE:X) will temporarily lay off hundreds of workers at its Great Lakes facility in Michigan in coming weeks, according to a filing the steelmaker made with the Great Lakes State.
In a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed on Aug. 5, the Pittsburgh-based company said it expects to let go fewer than 200 workers following its decision to halt production at the Michigan facility.
In mid-June, the company said it would idle two blast furnaces at its Great lakes and Gary Works plants, citing lower steel prices and softening demand.
U.S. Steel said the layoffs at the Michigan plant could last beyond six months. They will impact nearly every area of the facility, from blast furnace to finishing operations.
The layoffs call into question claims President Donald Trump has made about the resurgence of the domestic steel industry. Last week in Pennsylvania, Trump said his 25% tariff on foreign imports has turned a "dead" business into a "thriving" enterprise.
Domestic steel prices did rise in the immediate aftermath of Trump’s tariffs. But they have fallen dramatically amid improved supplies and weakening demand from the auto and farm machinery sectors.
An official at the United Steelworkers union, which represents U.S. Steel workers, said lay-offs were also planned for the Gary Works facility in Indiana.
U.S. Steel’s spokeswoman, however, said the company "currently" doesn’t expect "any employment level changes" at the Indiana plant.
U.S. Steel’s stock price has plunged 73% since March 1, 2018, when Trump announced his decision to crack down on foreign imports.
Those shares opened Tuesday morning down four cents to $12.39
