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<b><font FACE="Arial Narrow">
<p></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">STATEMENT OF THE BASIC STEEL INDUSTRY
CONFERENCE</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="6">
<p ALIGN="CENTER">UNITED STEELWORKERS OF AMERICA</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="CENTER">Adopted at Pittsburgh, PA on April 27, 1999</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial Narrow" SIZE="5">
<p> </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="6">
<p ALIGN="CENTER">I. INTRODUCTION</p>
</font></b><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The Basic Steel Industry Conference is vested by the International
Convention with the authority to implement the wage policy of the Union and apply it to
the Basic Steel Industry. In Canada, bargaining matters have been and will continue to
be
addressed by the Canadian National Policy Conference. We here address these issues as
they
affect our members in the United States.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Fulfillment of our charge has always been an imposing task. Today,
this
body confronts challenges that are in many ways unrivaled since the early days of our
Union.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We meet today on the eve of bargaining with the nation’s major
integrated steel companies. And while we did bargain with them in 1996, all of our
major
contracts were resolved through binding arbitration, as provided for in the 1993-94
settlements. Thus for the first time in six years we will be facing the companies with
a
traditional strike deadline.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
<b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Stand Up For Steel</p>
</b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The last six years have been nothing if not eventful. For most of
this
period the steel industry enjoyed a sustained period of substantial prosperity. Between
1993 and 1997 total industry shipments rose by 18%, operating profit rose from $10 per
ton
to $40 per ton and the industry generated total profits of over $10 billion.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Recently, however, a dark cloud has moved over the horizon. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">For 18 months now the Steelworkers Union has been speaking out about
the crisis facing America’s steel industry. Immediately following the first of the
currency collapses in Asia, we pointed to the series of events that, if left unchecked,
would follow: these countries would face economic collapse and decline in their
domestic
demand; and, with the application of the IMF’s "medicine," a flood of
imports into America of key manufactured products -– particularly steel. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We pointed out that none of this was inevitable, that prompt and
decisive Government action could easily avert this crisis. In fact, as we made clear,
the
longer action was delayed, the more damage would be done, much of it damage that could
never be repaired, and the more difficult the problem would be to solve. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Eventually our voice was joined by America’s steel companies in
the creation of our extraordinary Stand Up For Steel campaign. That campaign, to put it
mildly, has turned the nation’s capital on its head.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">When we began this effort, no one believed that we could do
anything to
stop the flood of imports. By November of last year imports consumed almost 50% of our
market, and there seemed no limit to the damage that would be done.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">But this Union mobilized and organized itself and has forced our
nation’s leaders to address the situation. And our efforts are paying off.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">On March 17, the United States House of Representatives, by an
overwhelming 289 – 141 margin, passed HR 975 – a bill limiting steel imports
into this country to their level prior to the crisis. While the bill still awaits
action
in the Senate, it is clear that our Union has succeeded in forcefully bringing the
issue
to the nation’s attention.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Through our efforts we have also taken important steps toward
changing
the basic terms of the debate in this country about international trade. The purpose
and
effect of trade must be to help working people, not enrich multinational corporations
and
Wall Street. Stand Up For Steel has opened up this issue and has laid important
groundwork
in creating a global economy that works for workers.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The crisis is not over, far from it. While it is true that overall
import levels in the first quarter of this year were below the record levels reached in
the third and fourth quarters of 1998, imports from a number of key steel producing
countries are still dramatically above their pre-crisis level. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Although imports of hot-rolled steel declined in the first quarter
of
1999 from their peak in November of 1998, with Japan, Russia and Brazil backing away,
numerous other countries have already moved in to take their place. Japan and Brazil,
in
the meantime, have quickly increased their dumping of other key steel products.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">As we prepare for bargaining we must continue to press for passage
of S
395 in the Senate.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">However, one thing has been proven beyond doubt. America’s
Steelworkers have a loud and effective voice in Washington and state capitols around
the
nation. And the entire American steel industry is better off because of it.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
<b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Organizing for Security</p>
</b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our Union's fundamental mission remains today what it has always
been
-- to raise the standard of living and improve the working conditions of our members.
These are goals from which we will never deviate. But we must recognize that achieving
this goal today presents us with extraordinary challenges.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Little has ever come easy for our members. Steel industry employers
have always resisted our drive, first for basic recognition and then to create a decent
level of wages and benefits. But the last 15 years have witnessed an employer offensive
against workers and their unions unseen since the days of our Union’s founding. In
today’s environment workers and their unions must make dramatic changes in the
way we
pursue our goals.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Today, more than ever, the only way to achieve our objectives is
through organizing -- reaching out and organizing our existing members --
"Organizing
the Organized," as well as organizing those who work in our industries without the
protection of a union – "Organizing the Unorganized." </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">"Organizing the Organized" means first educating and then
involving our members in every phase of the bargaining process. If we ever permitted
ourselves to believe that we could accomplish our goals at the bargaining table without
the strength that can only come from an involved and organized membership, those
illusions
have been cruelly shattered by the union-busters who every day challenge our very
existence. It is simply not possible to successfully confront the immensity of
corporate
power without an informed and mobilized membership. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Nor can we immunize ourselves from the threat of low-wage, non-union
competitors. Workers who labor without the protection of a union contract are both
hurting
themselves as well as directly threatening our hard-won gains. All workers -- union and
non-union alike -- suffer when there is non-union competition. Organizing the
unorganized
will benefit us all.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our challenge here is immense. In the last five years over 15
million
tons of new steelmaking capacity has gone online. Virtually all of this capacity is in
the
form of new mini-mills using thin-slab cast technology.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The most infamous of these projects is TRICO, the venture between
LTV
Steel, British Steel and Sumitomo, now operating in Decatur, Alabama. However, TRICO is
not the only challenge. New capacity has also been added or announced by Nucor,
Gallatin
Steel, Steel Dynamics, North Star Steel/BHP, Birmingham, IPSCO and others. In fact,
all of
the large integrated steel companies have to one degree or another used the extended
period of labor peace associated with the most recent contracts to build or buy into
non-union operations.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Most of these facilities are being constructed at new sites and
many in
areas hostile to unions, with the intent of depriving their employees of union
representation, wages and benefits. While these companies claim that the additional
capacity will reclaim business from imports, it will more likely threaten
USWA-represented
integrated facilities.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In the iron ore industry, Cleveland Cliffs has used the period of
our
latest contract to purchase the reconstituted Reserve Mining Company (once a
partnership
between LTV and AK Steel) and run it as the only non-union iron ore mine in North
America,
Like LTV, Cleveland Cliffs has chosen to put its entire relationship with the USWA at
risk
to maintain Northshore Mining as a non-union competitor. CCI runs partnership mines
that
include just about all of the North American integrated industry, thus implicating in
this
endeavor most of those with whom we bargain.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our Union once represented over 90% of all American steelworkers.
With
that representation came tremendous power to raise wage and benefit levels throughout
the
industry. While we still have substantial power, we must recognize that unless we
regain
our representation rights over the overwhelming majority of the industry, we will soon
lose our ability to set and raise living standards for our members.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We pledge ourselves to an all-out effort to bring union
representation
to all those working in the steel industry. This will include a dedicated program to
bring
the Union to areas of the companies which we have not historically targeted. All
employees
eligible for union representation need a union, whatever the color of their collar. We
do
so for the benefit of those workers, but also to protect the hard-won gains of our
members
at the facilities we represent.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">To fulfill our collective bargaining obligations to ourselves, our
families and our communities, we simply must ORGANIZE!</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
<b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Looking Ahead</p>
</b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We stand today at a crossroads. Steel is our Union’s original
jurisdiction and still in many ways the heart of our Union. Many of our proudest
accomplishments, particularly in the area of collective bargaining, were achieved first
and have been advanced the farthest in this industry.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Now, however, with many of our members well into their careers and
looking forward to retirement, there is a great temptation to rest on our laurels and
ignore the very real threats that we face. This we cannot do.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our fathers and grandfathers, who built this Union, did so for
themselves, but they also acted so that their children and grandchildren could enjoy a
better life than they did. Now it is our turn. It is our sacred obligation to fight for
ourselves, our daughters and sons, and to leave this Union a better place than we found
it.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">And so in this round of bargaining we will focus on
<b>SECURITY</b>. We
will secure ourselves first by securing our Union, so that when we are gone there will
still be a Steelworkers Union to do for the next generation what it did for us. We will
organize the unorganized; we will stop the erosion of our bargaining units; and we will
take back our work from outside contractors. We will fight for fair wage increases.
And we
will fight for a secure retirement, both for ourselves and for those who came
before.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Traditionally, the Statement of the Basic Steel Industry Conference
has
covered a wide range of issues, reflective of the diversity of employers in this
jurisdiction. This year, however, we have decided to sharpen our focus. This document
lays
out the broad objectives which are applicable in the vast majority of our bargaining
situations -- the issues that unite us as members of the Steelworkers Union and define
our
overall vision of collective bargaining.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">With these considerations in mind, and aware of our heavy
responsibility in these difficult times, we adopt the policy outlined below. It will
become the task of the individual bargaining committees to further refine and
particularize the broad goals we have set and to implement them through collective
bargaining.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="6"><b>
<p ALIGN="CENTER">II. KEY BARGAINING PRIORITIES</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The objectives spelled out in this section are our top priorities.
Every bargaining situation is different, and we must always address the specific needs
articulated by our members. Long and often painful experience, however, has taught us
that
if our contracts do not contain the items described below they are unlikely, over the
long
run, to secure our future.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We seek to secure ourselves in five ways:</p>
<ul>
<b>
<li>UNION SECURITY</b>, because we understand that a strong union is the only
foundation
upon which we can build our program;</li>
<b>
<li>EARNINGS SECURITY</b>, because all of our members have the right to a decent
standard of
living;</li>
<b>
<li>JOB SECURITY</b>, because without a secure job none of what we win is
meaningful;</li>
<b>
<li>RETIREMENT SECURITY</b>, because after a lifetime of work we all need to know
that we
can live out the remainder of our days with dignity; </li>
<b>
<li>SAFETY,</b> because making a living should not cost us our health or our
lives.</li>
</ul>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">A. Union Security</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">1. Neutrality / Card Check</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our strength in collective bargaining flows directly from our
ability
to represent all workers in a given industry. We must begin this struggle "at
home," by using our collective bargaining strength to gain representation rights
at
all of our existing employers’ facilities and among all of their employees.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Every USWA contract needs language which commits the employer to a
position of absolute neutrality in the event that we attempt to organize their
non-union
employees. The decision to join the union should be left entirely to the workers, with
no
involvement whatsoever by the company. In addition, the employer should agree that
when we
submit cards validly signed by a majority of non-represented workers, we should
immediately be recognized as the union. The right to negotiate an initial contract
must be
protected by binding arbitration, and we need a preference for our members for all
hiring
at new or existing facilities that do not today have a union.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Finally, it is absolutely vital that the commitments outlined above
extend to any operation in which the employer has any meaningful interest. LTV’s
exploitation of a loophole in the neutrality provisions of the 1993-94 Agreements
allowed
them to construct a non-union mini-mill and directly threaten the jobs of thousands of
our
members. And while no other major employer had quite the audacity of LTV, all did
follow
their lead to some extent, taking positions in joint ventures just below the level
where
their commitment to neutrality would apply.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We did not Stand Up For Steel and save the industry so they could
turn
around and break our Union. We saved it for Steelworkers.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">On these issues there can be no compromise. No company which
opposes,
in any way, shape or form, our efforts to represent all of its workers will ever enjoy
a
stable or constructive relationship with this Union.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">2. Common Expiration Date</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Most employers in the steel industry with whom we bargain own or
control other business units, many of which are also represented by our Union.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our bargaining strength would obviously be maximized if we were to
bargain with all of the business units of such an enterprise at the same time; however,
often we do not do so. Rather we bargain unit-by-unit at different times throughout the
bargaining cycle.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The reason for this is simple: employers, anxious to minimize our
bargaining strength and maximize theirs, work hard at staggering the termination dates
of
their various USWA and other union agreements. Their strategy is to divide and
conquer, to
play one group of Steelworkers off against another, and frequently, they do it well.
Those
who fall into this trap will eventually pay a price, and if we allow it to happen, we
have
only ourselves to blame.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our challenge is clear. We must see to it that all of our labor
agreements with a multi-unit enterprise expire at the same time. Common expiration
dates
are absolutely essential and will be a central focus in our coming round of
bargaining.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Accomplishing this will require advance research, planning and
coordination. The Basic Steel Industry Conference urges each negotiating committee to
take
the following steps well in advance of the commencement of their bargaining:</p>
<ul>
<li>Compile a list of the expiration dates of all labor agreements between our Union
and any
business entities related to the unit at which our members work. The International
Union
is available to help in making this compilation.</li>
<li>In conjunction with our Union’s bargaining experts at the District and
International levels, and in close consultation with the negotiating committees
for the
related business units, devise a strategy to bring all labor agreements to a
common date
of expiration.</li>
</ul>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">When made a priority, this issue can be won and will pay dividends
for
a long time.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">3. Partnership / Involvement Programs</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In recent years, our workplaces have become places of continuous
change. In their drive to increase profitability, companies are constantly introducing
new
technologies and trying to implement new forms of work organization. These changes are
often designed to increase the control that management has over our work. It is
critical
that the Union has the opportunity to bargain over these changes before they are
implemented. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Almost all employers are creating programs that claim to provide
"worker voice" or involvement. But without the full involvement of the Union,
these programs will not address workers’ needs.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In the last round of bargaining we implemented far-reaching
Partnership
programs with many companies in the steel industry. The record of these programs is
decidedly mixed. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In some places they have been a clear success. The Union has
extended
its influence, solved problems and allowed workers more say than ever over the design,
implementation and impact of new technology. However, we must also face the fact that
in
many cases the Partnership process is being used by employers to undermine the role of
the
Union in the workplace. And finally there are cases where the programs have been all
but
abandoned or never even got off the ground.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">It will be our goal in this round of bargaining to negotiate
effective
Partnership programs where they do not yet exist and substantially strengthen the
Partnership programs that we have, increasing our decision-making authority within the
Partnership process.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Those implementing a Partnership program for the first time should
refer to the Union’s Wage Policy Statement for valuable guidance. In cases where
programs do exist our focus will be as follows:</p>
<ol TYPE="a">
<ol TYPE="a">
<b>
<li>Resources</b> - Continuous bargaining takes significant resources. We cannot
prepare
ourselves and carry out the analysis and bargaining that is necessary without
significantly greater resources under the Union’s exclusive control. We
will use this
round of bargaining to negotiate significant increases in Company funding of the
extensive
training that our Union must provide for those who lead and participate in
Partnership
programs and to fund the research, planning, caucusing and day-to-day efforts of
those
leaders and members of our Local Unions who administer Partnership programs at
the
corporate and plant levels. </li>
<b>
<li>Process and Control</b> - It is necessary to ensure that all discussions
regarding
change in the workplace take place <u>only</u> in a union-sanctioned forum, and
that all
Union participants be chosen exclusively by the Union.</li>
</ol>
</ol>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Finally, it is important to recognize that winning good contract
language, while critical, is only a first step. We must also develop strategies for
dealing with the issues that arise as the workplace changes and for disseminating a
clear
sense of union goals and priorities. </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">4. Duration of Agreements / Timing of Negotiations</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The length of an agreement is often one of the final items to be
negotiated and seldom receives the attention it deserves.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our experience in the last round of bargaining has taught us that
long-term agreements generally work against the interests of our members. The stability
that the companies sought was used to implement plans that weakened our Union. Without
a
contract expiration to worry about, the employers took the Union for granted when
managing
their business. In a fast-changing world we need to return to the bargaining table
with an
expiration facing the employer at least once every three years.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Collective bargaining is good for the union. It provides us with an
enhanced opportunity to listen to our members and to bring their concerns to the
attention
of management. And it does so in a forum where we are most likely to be heard.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Companies are never shy about asking us to re-open our contracts if
they get themselves in trouble. Shorter-term contracts simply make it a two-way
street.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Similarly, we are deeply concerned about the rash of contracts being
bargained long before their expiration. While early bargaining can benefit both sides,
it
is most often the employer who gains when we give up the leverage that comes from the
possibility of a work stoppage. While strikes should always be viewed as an absolute
last
resort, we fool ourselves if we believe that we do equally well without the discipline
on
the employer that a possible work stoppage provides.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We will enter into early bargaining in this round only with
employers
who conclusively demonstrate their interest in our concerns. We set the following
pre-conditions for all early bargaining.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">First, the employer must make an irrevocable commitment to the
actual
language of our pattern neutrality/card check clause and agree that it will be part of
any
new contract, irrespective of when that contract is finally negotiated. Second, the
employer must agree that all USWA-represented locations will be part of the bargaining
process, with all contracts expiring at the same time. Individual bargaining committees
may want to add (but not substitute) additional conditions as well.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">5. Pattern Bargaining</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The creation and maintenance of an industry pattern is absolutely
vital. If we allow one employer to deviate from the pattern, we are simply lowering the
standard for everyone. Likewise, using an employer’s temporary good circumstances
to
send them ahead of the pattern will provide short-lived benefits with disastrous
consequences in the long run. While the modern world requires innovative and tailored
solutions, the principle of a "level-playing field" is needed now more than
ever.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Since 1985 when the major integrated steel producers decided to
dissolve the Coordinating Committee Steel Companies (CCSC) as a bargaining entity, we
have
bargained singly with each company. Though the companies decided to fragment their own
bargaining structure, that did not oblige the Union to do the same. Instead, the
bargaining activities at each company have been closely monitored and coordinated under
the overall leadership of our International President.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Despite determined resistance from some companies, we have
maintained a
level playing field and pattern settlements across the major steel companies who
formerly
comprised the CCSC. Much of our energy in recent years has been exerted to protect,
extend, and defend that pattern well beyond the former boundaries of the CCSC. In the
forthcoming round of company-by-company negotiations, we will continue to engage in
pattern bargaining.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">B. Earnings Security - Wages</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">It is as necessary as ever that we establish and preserve a decent
standard of living. To that end, we must negotiate wage and other monetary improvements
which restore and maintain purchasing power and compensate our members for improved
productivity. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our members need and have earned a raise. The American steel
industry
is the most productive in the world, yet American Steelworkers are earning the same
wages
as we did in the early 1970’s (after adjusting for inflation). Since 1983, steel
wages have not kept pace with inflation, and a substantial catch-up on the cost of
living
is now imperative. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We have always insisted on equal pay for equal work, and therefore
we
adamantly oppose any two-tier wage agreements which pit one set of members against
another. We are committed as well to pay equity -- equal pay for work of comparable
value
-- and will strive to correct historic inequities where they exist.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">With their outrageous levels of executive compensation, it is
fraudulent for companies to talk about holding the line on compensation costs and
requiring our members to look to profit sharing as the source of higher take home pay.
Our
emphasis will be on permanent and meaningful increases in the base wage rate.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Signing bonuses and other lump-sum payments, while attractive,
should
be resisted wherever possible. These payments are soon spent, leaving members no better
off for the long term. Good contracts not only provide current improvements, they also
position us for the future. Money spent on signing bonuses can only take away from real
improvements in our standard of living.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">C. Job Security</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">At the core of our job security and protection program are four
absolutely essential elements. First is contract language guaranteeing <b>EMPLOYMENT
SECURITY</b>. Second is language which eliminates the <b>CONTRACTING OUT</b> of
bargaining
unit work. Third is a <b>SUCCESSORSHIP</b> clause which guarantees that in the event
of a
plant sale, the buyer will recognize the Union and adopt either the current agreement
or
an acceptable substitute. Fourth is a program to <b>REDUCE THE LEVEL OF
OVERTIME</b>.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We must stand up and demand that companies create full-time,
good-paying Steelworker jobs. </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p>1. Employment Security </b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4"></p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The recent import crisis has provided all of us with conclusive
proof
of the value of this protection. And now that it has proved its worth, a number of
companies have suggested that they want it back. We will not allow this to happen. We
will
use this round of bargaining to achieve this protection where we do not yet have it
and to
strengthen it where it already exists. Employers must simply accept the fact that
employees are not a disposable asset, to be discarded at the first sign of trouble.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">2. Contracting Out</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">There is no security if the company can escape contractual wages and
benefits by shipping out bargaining unit work to outside contractors and no contract
clause has done more to build our Union than the contracting out protections that we
have
won in the steel industry. Most of our contracts now contain these clauses and our
experience confirms their value.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In this round of bargaining we must move ahead – closing
loopholes
involving specific issues in production and maintenance and clerical and technical
units,
in both steel mills and iron ore mines. We must also look for ways to strengthen the
workability of the clause to make sure that it is used for its intended purpose.
Permitting the employer to contract our work in exchange for guaranteed levels of
overtime
is selling the company the rope with which they will one day hang our Union. It must
end.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">As is detailed later in this Statement, we must also insist that the
companies rebuild and revitalize the trade and craft forces.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">3. Successorship</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Absent a successorship clause, the employer can always sell the
enterprise to new owners who are then free to reject both the contract and the Union
and
put our members on the street in favor of a new work force. In the past, the subject of
successorship guarantees was often overlooked or assigned a low priority in
negotiations
because a sale of the plant did not seem imminent. However, bitter experience has
taught
us that there are many facilities and workers no longer covered by this Statement
because
of that error in judgment. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">While this protection does exist widely in the steel industry, there
remain many employers who continue to resist it. In this round of bargaining we are
determined to correct the problem. The jobs of thousands of Steelworkers depend on
it.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">4. Overtime Reduction</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The achievement of a 40-hour week is one of labor’s proudest
accomplishments. Recent events have made a mockery of this heritage. Companies are
demanding that our members work longer and longer. And our members, because of wage
stagnation, are working increasing amounts of overtime simply to maintain their
standard
of living.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">A vicious cycle has been set in motion:</p>
<ul>
<li>Wage reductions in the 1980’s and wage stagnation in the 1990’s have
driven
our members to overtime. These massive levels of overtime have obscured the fact
that
wages have stagnated despite the unseemly growth of executive compensation.</li>
<li>Increased overtime has enabled the industry to avoid their responsibility to
hire new
employees and train existing workers to move up as older employees depart. As a
result,
force levels have become depleted, necessitating even more overtime.</li>
<li>Inadequate force levels have caused or compounded a host of other problems,
including
the use of outside contractors, contingent workers, temporary employees and
part-time
employment.</li>
</ul>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">As a Union we are committed to building a world where workers have
the
time to be with their children, spouses, other loved ones and friends.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The reduction of overtime is one of our foremost objectives. In this
round of bargaining we will negotiate provisions which dramatically limit forced
overtime,
reduce its overall level in our workplace, and mandate the hiring of new employees. We
clearly recognize that at the same time, we must negotiate wage and benefit levels
sufficient to provide a decent standard of living based on a 40-hour week.</p>
</font><font FACE="Courier New">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">We should build upon the
foundation
of the Overtime Control Training Funds previously negotiated in many of our steel
agreements. Where such Funds exist, we must negotiate language requiring full and
regular
reports concerning their income and expenditures. We must also take steps to prevent
the
companies from controlling such Funds through unilateral action.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">D. Retirement Security</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Negotiating increases in, or creating where they do not exist,
Defined
Benefit Pension Plans, as well as securing improvements for past retirees and their
surviving spouses, must be high priorities on our bargaining agenda. </p>
</font>
<blockquote>
<b><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"></font><font FACE="Arial"
SIZE="4">1.
Defined Benefit Pensions</p>
</font></b>
</blockquote>
<font FACE="Arial" size="3">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">A Defined Benefit Pension Plan
<u>ensures</u>
a steady retirement income for the retiree and his/her spouse for the entire period of
their retirement and is backed by a guarantee from the federal government. Defined
Contribution Plans provide no such assurance or guarantee, and we unequivocally oppose
any
movement toward them.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In this round of bargaining our central focus will be on
substantially
improving the basic minimum multiplier. All of our members have the right to enjoy a
decent retirement.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In those cases where pension programs have both minimum multipliers
as
well as pensions based on earnings, we will support the continuation of the earnings
formula. The wage increases which we negotiate will improve pensions for those of our
members who retire on this basis.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Where employers are unable to sponsor single-employer Defined
Benefit
Pension Plans because of the employer’s size or other economic circumstances, the
Union will insist that the employer join an established multi-employer Defined Benefit
plan such as the NIGPP or Steelworker Pension Trust. These plans provide our members
with
early retirement opportunities and disability benefits as well as having the
protections
afforded by the PBGC. In addition, these plans have the added benefit of joint control
of
pension plan investments, thus preventing, consistent with legal requirements, the
investment of our deferred wages against our interests.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">As long as the Defined Benefit Pension Plan is properly funded and
reasonable benefits are maintained, we are not opposed to 401(k) Plans that allow
employees to put away additional money if they are interested and able. Such
401(k)’s
should include worker-friendly investment options. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">However, we absolutely oppose "matching employer
contributions," where the employer contributes money to a 401(k) Plan based on an
employee’s contributions to the plan. Such an arrangement is inherently
discriminatory since it favors employees who can afford to put money into the plan. In
fact, any employer contributions to a 401(k) diverts money that could be used for other
benefits and will eventually undermine a solid Defined Benefit retirement program.</p>
</font>
<blockquote>
<b><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"></font><font FACE="Arial"
SIZE="4">2.
Improvements for Past Retirees / Surviving Spouses</p>
</font></b>
</blockquote>
<font FACE="Arial" size="3">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">We have a moral obligation to
provide for our retired members and their surviving spouses. When we negotiate our
contracts we are standing on the shoulders of those who came before. We should
recognize
their contribution and take on their fight as they fought for us.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Past retirees and their surviving spouses have had their pension
incomes steadily eroded by inflation -- benefit checks that seemed ample years ago have
lost significant purchasing power. Past efforts to raise pensions, though helpful, have
not been sufficient. Therefore, we must address and remedy this injustice with full
understanding that the cost of these gains will be recognized by the employer as part
of
the overall value of the "economic package" which we bargain. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We should actively consult with and take careful account of the
needs
of our retirees when we prepare our bargaining demands. Our retired Steelworkers can
and
should play an important role in supporting the bargaining process. Many companies are
prepared to take a lifetime of labor from workers and then leave them behind. As a
Union
we must never allow this to happen.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="5"><b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">E. Safety</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Making a living should not cost a life. Since January of 1996, 52
USWA
members working in the steel industry died in workplace accidents. Thousands more
suffered
serious injuries, or contracted life-threatening diseases from exposure to toxic
substances. Excess overtime; the use of outside contractors; technological change
without
attention to safety; the lack of proper safety training and orientation, especially
when
jobs change or new workers enter the workplace; and the blind push for production are
making today’s workplaces more hazardous every day. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We must also work to assure that workplace safety and health
programs
recognize the real causes of workplace injuries, and respect the knowledge and skill of
union members. Many corporate programs, like "behavioral safety," assume that
worker "misbehavior" is the cause of most safety and health problems. Other
programs are based on the insulting belief that union members are too stupid to care
about
their own safety, so they must be bribed with pizzas, jackets, or the chance to win a
vacation if they avoid accidents. Such programs only eliminate accident reporting
–
not accidents -- and must be actively resisted.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The Union knows better. Workplace injuries and illness are caused by
hazards, not misbehavior. A serious safety and health program identifies and corrects
those hazards by enlisting the participation of the entire workforce, acting through
their
union. Our message must always be that our members are not the problem, they are the
solution. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Safety and health programs must also explicitly recognize the role
of
the Union. Most companies pay for full-time union safety representatives, or additional
safety and health committee members, but often insist on management having a hand in
picking them. We must fight for all the representatives we can get, but management must
not be involved in their selection.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Union members understand that safety and health problems in the
workplace become environmental problems outside the workplace. We also know that an
employer with a poor environmental record will not long survive in business.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Environmental issues must be on the Union’s agenda. We should
work
for joint union-management environmental committees, and full disclosure to the Union
of
all corporate environmental information.</p>
</font><b><font FACE="Swis721 BlkEx BT,Franklin Gothic Demi Cond" SIZE="6">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="6">
<p ALIGN="CENTER">III. OTHER BARGAINING PRIORITIES</p>
</font></b><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In addition to those items described above, the Basic Steel Industry
Conference also recognizes the following issues as bargaining priorities.</p>
<b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">A. Contractual Benefits</p>
<blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">1. Health Insurance</p>
</blockquote>
</b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Our members and their families are entitled to quality health care
fully paid for by the employer -- both when they are working and after they retire.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We welcome joint company-union cost containment programs which
focus on
the sources of health cost escalation -- hospitals, physicians and other health care
providers. To that end, we are prepared to consider participation in accredited managed
care programs that are in compliance with negotiated protocols and which emphasize
access
to high quality care and respect for patient rights. However we actively oppose
short-sighted efforts by employers to shift their costs onto our members through
employee
contributions, higher deductibles, coinsurance and other forms of benefit reduction.
</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We encourage participation in the Steelworkers Health and Welfare
Fund,
a union-sponsored program which offers a variety of cost-effective health plan options
for
employees and retirees. By leveraging the combined purchasing power of Steelworker
members
nationwide, the Fund is able to control costs, maintain broad coverage and assure fair
and
responsible plan administration.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">2. Paid Time Off</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We must seek to expand programs which provide our members with time
off
with pay. The stresses and strains of work life today require that people be given more
time to be with their families.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We will seek improved benefits, such as longer vacation periods and
vacation bonuses, more liberal eligibility rules, elimination of pay-in-lieu provisions
and improved scheduling. </p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Vacations should not only be increased, but there must be greater
accommodation to our members in the scheduling of vacations and greater restriction on
the
company’s right to schedule vacation shutdowns. Our members should have the right
to
take their vacations during the prime summer and holiday periods. We will seek to
restore
the vacation bonus keyed to vacations in undesirable months.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">3. Family Leave</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We need to negotiate employer-paid family leave programs to cover
our
members when they lose work by reason of the birth of a child, serious illness of a
family
member, or any other family circumstance that requires the employee's presence. These
programs need to be available to both spouses.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">4. Child Care</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We need programs that assure high quality care for the children of
our
members.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">5. Disability Programs</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We must expand and improve upon programs that ensure that those
members
who are disabled suffer no loss of earnings or benefits while unable to return to their
former or equivalent job.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
<b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">B. Building the Union</p>
<blockquote>
<p>1. Office, Technical and Professional Employees </p>
</blockquote>
</b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">All steel companies have substantial numbers of employees who are
eligible for union representation, but whom we have not yet organized. At the same time
our existing office and technical units have been seriously eroded as companies have
redefined work which should rightfully be ours. In this round of bargaining we must
demand
meaningful reviews of the scope of all our existing units and the return of all work
which
our members can do. We also commit to eliminating any restrictions to the organizing of
all non-represented employees.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">2. Hiring Preference</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">For years our members have sacrificed so that their companies could
survive. It is our right to demand, consistent with the company’s equal employment
obligations, that the first preference for all bargaining unit hiring go to the sons,
daughters and other relatives of our bargaining unit members. We have earned the right
to
say that these are our jobs.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">3. Employee Orientation</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">It is necessary to restore, update and make mandatory programs that
provide new employees with an orientation prepared and presented by the Union. New
employees need to understand that their wages and benefits came through collective
struggle, not employer generosity. All of our members would benefit from exposure to
such
programs.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">4. Paid Union Time</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Companies must assume a far greater share of the costs associated
with
the administration and negotiation of the collective bargaining agreement. Union
activists
should not lose contractual benefits because of time spent on behalf of the Local
Union or
International.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">5. PAC and SOAR Checkoff</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We have negotiated PAC and SOAR check-off provisions in most of our
contracts. Such provisions should be included in all our contracts in the forthcoming
round of negotiations. </p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">6. Union Leave</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We need strong language which gives our members the right to take an
unpaid leave of absence to work for the Union, without adversely affecting their wages
and
benefits. Employers who oppose this right oppose our Union.</p>
<blockquote>
<b><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">7.</b> <b>Trade and Craft Revitalization / Training</p>
</b>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">One of our key accomplishments in the 1993-94 round of bargaining
was
to obligate the companies to undertake with us a joint review of their projected needs
for
maintenance workers over the following five years. The objective was to determine the
size
of the maintenance workforce needed to perform all necessary repair of the plant’s
equipment without relying on contractors or excessive overtime. The parties were
required
to reach agreement on a maintenance training plan that would accomplish these ends with
"last best offer" arbitration to resolve any disputes. With that five-year
period now over we need to once again bargain strong language requiring such a process,
including a commitment to far-reaching apprenticeship programs.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The need for training extends to all employees. We must therefore
develop programs to provide all our members with the necessary skills and knowledge to
do
their jobs and advance their careers.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>8. Institute for Career Development </p>
</blockquote>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We will continue to build on the unique achievements of the
Institute
for Career Development (ICD) in cooperation with steel industry employers. We will push
for more employers to join the ICD, participate in its development, and finance its
activities through cents-per-hour contributions. We will also seek to expand the role
of
the ICD to include providing post-secondary school scholarships for our children, with
an
appropriate increase in funding to defray this cost. </p>
</font><font FACE="Courier New">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">Many employers currently in the
ICD
are not providing adequate reports to the Union and the ICD with respect to ICD income
and
expenditures. Moreover, a number of companies use the "power of the purse" to
dominate their joint ICD programs by refusing to appropriate funds or issue checks. Our
patience has worn thin. It is time for us to insist that ICD funds be deposited in
separate accounts, free from the control of the companies.</p>
<b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">C. Equal Opportunity</p>
</b>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Recent years have seen a concerted assault being waged against
hard-won
civil rights programs and protections. In this light, we reaffirm our historic
commitment
to retain and strengthen equal opportunity for all workers and affirmative action for
those disadvantaged by historic injustices.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Though we have done much to remove the blight of discrimination from
the workplace, the task is far from complete. We must continue to insist that employers
halt any discriminatory practices and we must strengthen the joint civil rights
committee
and upgrade its activities and status.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We stand unequivocally against sexual harassment and other forms of
sex-based discrimination. For too long this problem has been swept under the rug. No
worker should have to be subjected to harassment in order to earn a living.</p>
<p align="center"> </font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="6"><b>IV. NEW DIRECTIONS
ISSUES </b></font><font
FACE="Arial" SIZE="4"></p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In our 1993 deliberations, this Conference invited all steel
companies
to participate in what we called "New Directions Bargaining," a multi-point
agenda that pioneered breakthroughs in area after area. Since 1993, our Union has
achieved
this at many steel companies, including all of the largest.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Not all companies adopted the New Directions approach, to be sure.
But
most of our important struggles have been long ones. For example, our improvements in
contracting out were 25 years in the making.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The years since 1993 have convinced us of the merits of New
Directions
Bargaining. While we are the first to acknowledge the problems involved with its
implementation, we are nonetheless convinced that it is an historically important
accomplishment. We therefore urge those bargaining committees which have not yet
achieved
all elements of the New Directions Bargaining agenda to secure them in their next
contracts.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We refer those bargaining committees which still need to achieve New
Directions to the 1993 BSIC Statement.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"> </p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="6"><b>
<p ALIGN="CENTER">V. RATIFICATION PROCEDURE</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Consistent with our past practice contract ratification will include
the following steps:</p>
<ol>
<ol>
<li>Any proposed settlement must be approved by the union negotiating committee for
submission to membership ratification.</li>
<li>Any proposed settlement must be determined by the International Executive
Board to
comply with the BSIC Policy Statement before being submitted to the membership
for
ratification.</li>
<li>Finally, any proposed settlement shall be subject to membership ratification
by a
majority of those voting in a vote conducted among the USWA members covered by
the
proposed settlement under procedures determined by the International
President.</li>
</ol>
</ol>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">This round we will add an additional step. As part of our program to
revitalize and empower the Basic Steel Industry Conference, the BSIC Advisory Board,
comprised of 35 local union leaders from throughout the steel industry, will review the
lead and subsequent settlements and make a recommendation to the International
Executive
Board as to whether they comply with the BSIC Policy Statement.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">The lead settlement will serve as the model for all of this
round’s steel industry bargaining and it is vital that the views of a broad
cross-section of our local union leaders be taken into account.</p>
</font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="6"><b>
<p ALIGN="CENTER">VI. CONCLUSION</p>
</b></font><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">While the Basic Steel Industry Conference strongly endorses this
Statement, we recognize that today it is only words. For this document to be
meaningful it
must be widely distributed, discussed, debated and put into practice.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">We therefore urge that this Statement</font><font
FACE="Swis721 BlkEx BT,Franklin Gothic Demi Cond" SIZE="4"> </font><font FACE="Arial"
SIZE="4">receive the widest possible distribution. Local unions should develop specific
plans to bring it to the attention of their members. Bargaining committees should
immerse
themselves in it as they prepare themselves for bargaining.</p>
<p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">In short, we urge all of our members to live it. Collective
Bargaining,
like all aspects of good trade unionism, is not a spectator sport.</p>
</font>
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