The world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal will lay off 171 steelworkers at its tin mill in Weirton, West Virginia in the US in order to remain competitive as a producer of tin-plated steel amid extraordinary economic conditions, according to press sources.
"About 35 workers have been laid off this week," said Mark Glyptis, president of United Steelworkers (USW) Local 2911, adding that another 100 or so have been on rotating, voluntary layoffs since last year, and those layoffs will now continue indefinitely.
In December, Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal said it would cut an unspecified number of jobs during 2010, mainly through attrition and optimization of production, following the rumors of 10,000 planned layoffs. However, the company had declined to give details about these adjustments.