A Calumet Region steel mill is set to be idled, putting hundreds out of work.
Cleveland-Cliffs plans to idle its Riverdale steel mill in the south suburbs this summer. United Steelworkers Local 1010 President James Thomas said about 300 workers would be laid off, including about 240 union steelworkers.
Most of the steelworkers at the mill on the Calumet River hail from Northwest Indiana, Thomas said. They're largely represented by USW Local 1010 in Hammond's Hessville neighborhood.
Cleveland-Cliffs spokeswoman Patricia Persico said the Cleveland-based steelmaker was temporarily but indefinitely idling steel mills in Riverdale, just across the state line in Illinois, and Steelton and Conshohocken in Pennsylvania.
“Cleveland-Cliffs has issued WARN notices related to the planned idle of its Conshohocken, Riverdale and Steelton facilities,” Persico said. “These temporary, indefinite idles are a necessary response to insufficient demand and pricing for the products the affected facilities produce, including rail, specialty plate and high-carbon sheet; all of which fall outside of Cliffs’ core business focus.”
Cleveland-Cliffs Indiana Harbor Works in East Chicago supplies iron to its Riverdale mill just across the state line. It was previously run by Acme Steel.
“Cliffs’ flat-rolled steel production levels will not be impacted by these actions. Approximately 950 employees will be impacted following the completion of the 60-day WARN notice period. We plan to idle all three facilities on or around June 30th,” Persico said. “We remain committed to supporting our employees and communities while monitoring market conditions.”
The Riverdale steel mill on the banks of the Calumet River includes two basic oxygen furnaces and a hot strip mill. It receives iron by train from Indiana Harbor Works, then turns it into hot-rolled coil for the automotive industry and other end uses.
Thomas said the idling came with little warning.
“It is with a heavy heart that I inform you the union was notified of the company’s decision to indefinitely idle the Riverdale facility. While the term closure was not used, the implications are deeply concerning,” he said in a message to Local 1010 members.
Cleveland-Cliffs also recently idled a mine in Minnesota and a mill in Michigan because of market conditions, laying off hundreds of workers. It laid off 620 workers when it idled its Minorca mine and partially idled its Hibbing taconite mine in Minnesota's Iron Range. The mines send iron ore down the Great Lakes to Cleveland-Cliffs’ Indiana Harbor Works and Burns Harbor Works steel mills in Northwest Indiana.
Cleveland-Cliffs also is laying off another 600 workers at its Dearborn Works mill outside Detroit due to the downturn in automotive production.
The exact amount of layoffs in Riverdale is not known because Cleveland-Cliffs had been hiring new workers there over the last few months, bringing on new staff as recently as last week, Thomas said.
The layoffs include managers and other non-union employees, Thomas noted. A skeleton staff will remain to watch the steel mill and do basic maintenance so it can be restarted if market conditions improve enough to warrant bringing more steelmaking capacity back online.
The steel industry has always been cyclical, with ups and downs, Thomas said. It’s not immediately clear when market conditions will improve enough to restart the mill, he continued.
In the meantime, the union is working to get the displaced workers transferred to other facilities like Cleveland-Cliffs’ Indiana Harbor Works and Burns Harbor Works steel mills just across the state line in Northwest Indiana.
Both mills likely will see an uptick in orders as work is shifted around, Thomas said.
The hope is that Riverdale will return to full production when market conditions improve, he said.
“At this time, we do not have many details, but we want to make it clear: Our union will fight to protect jobs, ensure that every impacted member has a path to continued employment and minimize the impact to our union family,” he said.
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