ArcelorMittal Cleveland could remain down for six months or longer, plant manager says

[Dr.Phool]

Source: Cleveland,com (Plain Dealer)

ArcelorMittal Cleveland could remain down for six months or longer, plant manager says
Posted by Frank Bentayou/Plain Dealer Reporter February 20, 2009 15:00PM
Categories: Manufacturing, Real Time News


Its blast furnaces cold since October, ArcelorMittal's Cleveland facility could remain virtually shut down for another six months or longer, the steel plant's general manager said Friday.

Two-thirds of the plant's salaried employees soon will receive temporary assignments at ArcelorMittal plants in other states, the company said Friday. And a union official said perhaps hundreds more hourly workers could be laid off within a month.

Global demand for finished steel dropped significantly in the fall. Since then, the company has idled about 450 hourly workers at the sprawling plant in the Flats.

Terry Fedor, ArcelorMittal's local general manager, said Friday that the world's largest steel company will be shifting about 200 of his plant's 300 salaried employees to other U.S. facilities by early March.

"We won't be laying any salaried employees off. They'll be on temporary assignment" at plants in West Virginia and Indiana, Fedor said. "But 'temporary assignment' can mean a long time. These will be six-months assignments," he said.

(more)

Read more: http://blog.cleveland.com/business/2009/02/arcelormittal_cleveland_could.html

[OhioChick]

1. It's been pretty scary here for a while now.....just getting worse. n/t

[meeloo]

2. Let's make sure we use our political cloud to get out of this mess

[ConcernedCanuk]

4. "political cloud " ?? - is that a typo, or a reflection of the political climate(pun intended) ?

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at any rate "political cloud " - I like the phrase

AND

Welcome to DU !!

[hedgehog]

3. I have several family connections to major basic industries.

It's frustrating as hell, because everyone is sitting on good projects that will save energy and money, but either the money can't be found to make the investment or management is afraid to spend a dime lest sales continue to fall off a cliff.