The US government actually did try to play protection measures for the industry. I want to say once in the 50's and once in the 60's and each time it had deleterious effects on the downstream industries that actually bought the steel from the primary producers. By 1970 something like 45 percent of the facilities that were making steel in the USA was severely out of date. We never modernized.
"Our government made it even more costly for American companies to compete by imposing stricter air and water pollution standards". Yeah, who needs air or water?
And we all benefit from this, not just steel workers. I have a lot of thoughts about the steel industry, but I believe that unions asked too much of the companies and the companies didn't want to spend cash upgrading their mills. They were dirty, dangerous, and polluting machines.
the same thing in Lorain Ohio but everyone forgets about Lorain - we downsized gave into all concessions combined jobs - followed all EPA wants - not good enough - when our Coke Plant shut down that was the start - then we became USS/Kobe & things started to look good - Kobe backs out - USS sells to RTI that destroyed Lorain Ohio
Mayor comments are right-on. foreign imports only one part. steel industry could have been made cleaner over the years but they decided not to. union leadership and companies had similar interests. keep paying higher labor costs until it is no longer competitive. they all wanted to avoid strikes. yet look at the decrease in employment post war, it was down by about 50% . if you had eyes you could see it where it was headed. still a tragedy that one day everyone is just gone.
My grandmother lived up the streets from sheet and tube andci remember black.monday like it was yesterday, well im a steel hauler leased to pii motor Express and haul lots of pipe and the owner of wheatland tube plants is updating all his plants in 2023 now ,so there wont be another black monday,and unions dont help.matters as far as im concerned.
Yes, they hold some of the blame. Wages were high and they had amazing benefits, like 16 weeks of vacation. What I've learned over my working life is that there is always money, it just depends on how you want to spend it.
@@randymagnum143 Kind of like they have in Europe. How long did you have to work at Youngstown to get your full pension and at what age? In the RR industry we can retire at full pension at age 60 with at least 360 months service.
@@WAL_DC-6B it's gone. They bankrupted the companies. The money should have been spent on updating the equipment rather than communist benefit packages. Then the mill Hunkie's grandchildren would have had jobs. But they only cared about themselves and now it's all gone.
"Vacation pay is a large cost item. We understand that in a new company employees would begin to accrue vacation time afresh, so that there would be no thirteen-week vacations during the early years of the company." . . . "Community Steel would be liable for an average of 32.5 cents an hour for vacation costs during the first ten years as compared to the 1978 industry-wide average of 86.5 cents an hour." - Fight Against the Shutdowns- Staughton Lynd They were willing to give that up and start fresh. The company wouldn't sell to the community.
They knew as early as the late 1930's that the bottom was going to fall out. The government begged the Youngstown area to modernize and diversify !!!
The US government actually did try to play protection measures for the industry. I want to say once in the 50's and once in the 60's and each time it had deleterious effects on the downstream industries that actually bought the steel from the primary producers. By 1970 something like 45 percent of the facilities that were making steel in the USA was severely out of date. We never modernized.
"Our government made it even more costly for American companies to compete by imposing stricter air and water pollution standards".
Yeah, who needs air or water?
And we all benefit from this, not just steel workers. I have a lot of thoughts about the steel industry, but I believe that unions asked too much of the companies and the companies didn't want to spend cash upgrading their mills. They were dirty, dangerous, and polluting machines.
Germany makes plenty of steel under strict pollution laws.
The EPA gutted American industry, if Trump gets back in I'm praying he guts their budget
@@CoalBreaker why do you want to drink polluted water and breathe polluted air?
@@millec60 but we *STILL* allow product in from countries that have 0 environmental remediation or control. Or worker health and safety precautions.
Lyle took the money and milked the mills dry
the same thing in Lorain Ohio but everyone forgets about Lorain - we downsized gave into all concessions combined jobs - followed all EPA wants - not good enough - when our Coke Plant shut down that was the start - then we became USS/Kobe & things started to look good - Kobe backs out - USS sells to RTI that destroyed Lorain Ohio
I used to haul outta kobe works back to sharon tube s plant on sharon pa,they let you haul heavy and they didnt care ,just ship it outta here.
SO SAD!!!!!
Mayor comments are right-on. foreign imports only one part. steel industry could have been made cleaner over the years but they decided not to. union leadership and companies had similar interests. keep paying higher labor costs until it is no longer competitive. they all wanted to avoid strikes. yet look at the decrease in employment post war, it was down by about 50% . if you had eyes you could see it where it was headed. still a tragedy that one day everyone is just gone.
It was the unions leadership fault, instead of using union dues to lobby congress for more support, they took vacations and did nothing
My grandmother lived up the streets from sheet and tube andci remember black.monday like it was yesterday, well im a steel hauler leased to pii motor Express and haul lots of pipe and the owner of wheatland tube plants is updating all his plants in 2023 now ,so there wont be another black monday,and unions dont help.matters as far as im concerned.
Unions are absolutely to blame.
Yes, they hold some of the blame. Wages were high and they had amazing benefits, like 16 weeks of vacation. What I've learned over my working life is that there is always money, it just depends on how you want to spend it.
@@lisk3822 and they did not spend it well did they? I highly recommend the book, "and the wolf finally came." John Hoerr
@@pierreklee8032 Oh thanks so much. I am a big reader and I want to know a lot more about this industry.
And those pesky little, non-union, domestic, EAF mini-mills.
@@WAL_DC-6B not just those. Do your history..Unions defeated themselves and the working man. All corruption.
But the union had 14 weeks payed vacation.
It took me over 25 years in the railroad industry to 5 get weeks paid vacation.
@@WAL_DC-6B steel workers in Youngstown topped out at 16 weeks
@@randymagnum143 Kind of like they have in Europe. How long did you have to work at Youngstown to get your full pension and at what age? In the RR industry we can retire at full pension at age 60 with at least 360 months service.
@@WAL_DC-6B it's gone. They bankrupted the companies. The money should have been spent on updating the equipment rather than communist benefit packages. Then the mill Hunkie's grandchildren would have had jobs. But they only cared about themselves and now it's all gone.
"Vacation pay is a large cost item. We understand that in a new company employees would begin to accrue vacation time afresh, so that there would be no thirteen-week vacations during the early years of the company." . . . "Community Steel would be liable for an average of 32.5 cents an hour for vacation costs during the first ten years as compared to the 1978 industry-wide average of 86.5 cents an hour." - Fight Against the Shutdowns- Staughton Lynd
They were willing to give that up and start fresh. The company wouldn't sell to the community.
It's always about money