ArcelorMittal has notified the United Steel Workers union and other stakeholders that it may lay off 16 percent of its entire US hourly workforce, including more than 60 percent of its Burns Harbor, Indiana employees.
The company said that, in response to the weak global demand, there is "the potential for an indefinite layoff" of 2,444 employees at Burns Harbor, which employs 4,000 hourly and salaried workers in total.
The Burns Harbor facility has been producing at a significantly reduced rate since October and has had to idle two of its blast furnaces since last month due to lack of orders.
"Potential workforce reductions are a direct result of the extraordinary economic environment we are facing and the company hopes to return workers to their jobs as market conditions warrant," the company said. ArcelorMittal employs more than 15,000 hourly workers in the US and 326,000 worldwide.
The company has joined other international and US steelmakers in recent months in significantly cutting output. ArcelorMittal has cut its North American steel production by 40 percent and is expected to cut its global steel production by 35 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008. The production cuts are a result of weak demand from the struggling automotive, construction and appliance industries.