Two recent articles in the Detroit Free Press and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette point out, the steel industry has truly taken a beating in this recession.

According to the Free Press, “The steel industry has been hit hard by the recession and the automotive industry’s turmoil, prompting the United Steelworkers to become leading national advocates for federal support of the automotive industry.”

It continues, “U.S. steel plants are operating at 38% of capacity, and tire plants are operating at about 50% of capacity, said Leo Gerard, president of United Steelworkers.”

The union president told the newspaper, “When the auto industry went down, the steel mill industry went down.”

Sadly, the P-G even predicts this could result in permanent closure of mills that are now temporarily closed.

-KG

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