US Steel to idle tubular plant in Ohio

US Steel revealed its intentions this week to temporarily idle its Lorain Tubular Operations in northeast Ohio in a letter filed to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services in which it also informed of its plans to lay off 77 employees at Lorain.

The document states that the company’s decision was made due to the recent “major and unanticipated” economic downturn. The plant, which manufactures goods for the oil and gas industries, will remain idle until further notice.

The layoffs began this week and are in addition to the 200 union members at the plant that are currently off work due to a one-week shutdown at the plant, during which they were asked to take vacation time off, said the company’s spokeswoman Erin Dipietro. The Lorain facility employs a total of 570.
Back in December of 2008, US Steel officials announced a nine-day shutdown of Lorain Tubular Operations in March, but now the amount of time the plant will remain shutdown is unknown as the market conditions continue to be weak.