WEIRTON, W.Va. — About 100 members of the United Steel Workers will temporarily lose their jobs at Arcelor-Mittal in Weirton. The company announced the layoffs which have already begun.
Mark Glyptis, President of USW Local 2911 in Weirton, said a poor crop season unexpectedly cut demand for the tin produced at the mill, used in the production of cans.
“The substrate we produce to make tin cans is used to can tomatoes, peas, corn and primarily food and it was a very poor harvest,” Glyptis said.
The lower demand for cans is the main reason for the layoffs, but Glyptis said some foreign countries have been able to manipulate currency and beat the steel tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration and that also has contributed to a slowdown in demand for the tin plated products.
According to Glyptis the downturn caught everyone off guard. The company had already interviewed and set aside 30 new people to hire, thinking business would be better. But Glyptis believed the condition would only be temporary.
“We believe there will be an uptick toward the end of the year and we’ll get our people back to work,” he said.