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Granite City Steelworkers Push for Long-Term U.S. Steel Commitment
Steelworkers at U.S. Steel’s Granite City Works say nationwide contract negotiations are making progress, but the Illinois mill’s future remains a central concern as its federal protection against closure, idling or sale is scheduled to expire in June 2027.
By Paul Ploumis
Published October 13, 2026
Key Points
- Contract talks: U.S. Steel and the United Steelworkers remain in negotiations over a new five-year labor agreement.
- Latest company wage proposal: Approximately 19.3% compounded wage growth over five years.
- Healthcare: U.S. Steel’s latest proposal calls for no healthcare premiums.
- Granite City restart: Blast Furnace B resumed production March 30 after more than two years idle.
- Workers added: U.S. Steel said roughly 400 employees were hired to support the restart.
- Federal protection: Granite City cannot be closed, idled or sold without federal consent before June 18, 2027, subject to specified exceptions.
- Second furnace: Blast Furnace A remains idle, with union leaders saying a restart would depend on sustained steel demand.
SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Steelworkers at Granite City Works say negotiations with U.S. Steel are moving in a more constructive direction as the union seeks a new nationwide labor agreement and stronger assurances about the future of the Illinois plant.
United Steelworkers Local 1899 President Craig McKey said there has been movement at the bargaining table and expressed optimism that the parties can ultimately reach a fair agreement.
However, the local’s concerns extend beyond wages and healthcare.
Granite City Works restarted steelmaking only about six and a half months ago, after Blast Furnace B had remained idle for more than two years. The future of the plant beyond mid-2027 remains less certain than that of many other U.S. Steel facilities owned by Nippon Steel.
ScrapMonster Exclusive: Granite City Has About Eight Months Before Its Special Protection Expires
The most important date for Granite City may not be the expiration of the labor contract. It is June 18, 2027.
Under the governance provisions created when Nippon Steel acquired U.S. Steel, the federal government received a “Golden Share” carrying approval rights over several major corporate actions.
The publicly filed terms state that U.S. Steel cannot close, idle or sell Granite City Works before June 18, 2027 without the required federal consent, except for specified temporary idling or force-majeure situations.
Most other named U.S. Steel production locations receive that protection through June 18, 2035.
From October 13, Granite City has roughly 248 days remaining before its shorter protection period expires.
There is another significant difference. The public National Security Agreement investment schedule identifies approximately $10.8 billion of planned capital investment for 2025–2028 across facilities including Gary Works, Mon Valley, Big River Steel, Minnesota ore operations and Fairfield Works.
Granite City Works does not have a facility-specific capital allocation listed in that schedule.
That does not mean U.S. Steel or Nippon Steel cannot invest in Granite City, nor does it establish that no investment is planned. It means the plant does not have the same publicly specified capital commitment that several other major facilities received in the filed agreement.
That makes Local 1899’s push for longer-term job security more than a normal contract demand. The union is negotiating while the plant is operating again, but before the federal protection that helped preserve it expires.
Blast Furnace B Restarted in March
U.S. Steel successfully restarted Blast Furnace B at Granite City Works on March 30, 2026.
The furnace had been idle since 2023.
U.S. Steel said it decided to restart the unit after evaluating customer demand and expected steel requirements for 2026.
Approximately 400 employees were hired, rehired or recalled to support the restarted operation.
The company said the restart was based on customer demand and its normal business planning process.
Granite City Nearly Lost More Production in 2025
The restart followed another period of uncertainty for the Illinois operation.
In September 2025, U.S. Steel informed the plant that it intended to stop supplying slabs to Granite City, which would have sharply reduced activity at the site.
The proposal triggered opposition from workers, local officials and U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski.
The company subsequently reversed that decision and continued slab shipments.
Several months later, U.S. Steel announced plans to restart Blast Furnace B.
The sequence has reinforced union demands for commitments that extend beyond short-term production decisions.
Second Blast Furnace Remains Idle
Granite City Works has two blast furnaces, but only Blast Furnace B is currently operating.
Blast Furnace A has remained idle since 2019.
McKey said restarting the second furnace would require sufficiently strong and sustained steel demand.
U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski, who met with Local 1899 leaders this week, said she would like to see U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel invest further in the operation and ultimately restart the second furnace.
Budzinski said local union leaders told her the operating furnace is generating a significant return for the company.
U.S. Steel has not publicly disclosed plant-specific profitability for Blast Furnace B, so that characterization should be understood as the union’s assessment rather than company-reported financial data.
Current U.S. Steel Offer Includes 19.3% Wage Growth
U.S. Steel and the United Steelworkers have been negotiating a successor to the Basic Labor Agreement that was originally scheduled to expire September 1.
The parties agreed to continue operating under the existing agreement while negotiations proceed.
U.S. Steel’s latest published proposal calls for a five-year contract running from September 1, 2026 through September 1, 2031.
| Latest U.S. Steel Proposal | Terms |
|---|---|
| Contract term | Five years |
| Total wage growth | Approximately 19.3%, compounded average over the contract term |
| Healthcare premiums | No premiums |
| Ratification bonus | $4,000 for eligible employees |
| Pensions | No changes to Carnegie Pension Plan or Steelworkers Pension Trust |
| Profit sharing | Current calculation and uncapped opportunity retained |
U.S. Steel’s initial July proposal called for approximately 18.2% wage growth over five years.
The company later increased the wage offer and revised its healthcare proposal after the union strongly objected to proposed cost-sharing changes.
Healthcare Was a Major Flashpoint
Healthcare became one of the most contentious issues during negotiations.
The United Steelworkers said the company’s earlier proposal would have shifted substantially more healthcare costs onto employees and their families.
U.S. Steel described the initial proposal as an effort to control rising healthcare costs through plan-design changes and potential additional cost sharing.
On September 30, the company changed its position.
Its current proposal calls for no healthcare premiums and withdraws the earlier proposal involving healthcare cost caps.
Other benefit provisions remain under negotiation.
No Tentative Agreement Has Been Announced
Local union leaders have expressed greater confidence about the direction of negotiations, but neither U.S. Steel nor the USW has publicly announced a tentative national agreement as of October 13.
A tentative settlement would still need to proceed through the union’s review and ratification process before becoming a new collective bargaining agreement.
The distinction matters because improved proposals and positive bargaining comments indicate progress, but they do not yet constitute a completed contract.
Job Security Remains Broader Than Granite City
The United Steelworkers has repeatedly said job security and capital investment are major priorities across U.S. Steel’s unionized operations.
The union has welcomed new investment but argued that commitments directed toward a limited number of facilities are not sufficient substitutes for broad employment protections.
That concern is particularly relevant after Nippon Steel’s 2025 acquisition of U.S. Steel.
The company’s federal agreement includes major investment commitments but distributes those commitments unevenly across the system.
The Golden Share Gives Granite City a Different Deadline
U.S. Steel’s amended corporate charter establishes specific federal approval rights over plant closures, sales and idlings.
| Facility Protection | Federal Consent Required Until |
|---|---|
| Granite City Works | June 18, 2027 |
| Other covered U.S. Steel production locations | June 18, 2035 |
The restriction contains exceptions for temporary idling related to matters such as safety, maintenance, upgrades, labor disruptions, weather and other defined conditions, as well as force-majeure events.
The shorter Granite City timeline is therefore one of the most important structural differences affecting the plant’s future.
Granite City Is Not Listed in the $10.8 Billion Capital Schedule
The National Security Agreement also contains an investment schedule covering approximately $10.8 billion of planned capital spending from 2025 through 2028.
| Facility / Project | 2025–2028 Commitment |
|---|---|
| Big River Steel | $3.0B |
| Gary Works | $3.1B |
| Mon Valley | $2.4B |
| Keetac / Minntac | $0.8B |
| Fairfield Works | $0.5B |
| New Mini Mill | $1.0B |
Granite City Works is not assigned a specific amount in this published schedule.
That omission should not be interpreted as proof that Granite City will receive no future capital spending. It does mean the plant lacks the explicit facility-level allocation visible for several other U.S. Steel locations.
Steel Demand Outlook Is Positive but Moderate
Granite City’s second blast furnace ultimately depends on whether U.S. Steel sees enough market demand to justify additional production.
The World Steel Association’s latest Short Range Outlook projects U.S. steel demand to rise 2.0% in 2026 and approximately 1.5% in 2027.
Growth is expected to come primarily from data centers, power-generation infrastructure, renewable energy, oil and gas investment and selected manufacturing projects.
U.S. raw steel production is also running ahead of last year.
American Iron and Steel Institute data show adjusted year-to-date production through October 10 at 73.763 million net tons, up ↑5.3% from the comparable 2025 period.
Those indicators provide a somewhat stronger industry backdrop than a year ago, but they do not by themselves establish that demand is sufficient to restart Granite City’s second blast furnace.
What to Watch Next
Tentative contract: The next major labor milestone is whether U.S. Steel and the USW convert recent bargaining progress into an actual tentative agreement.
June 18, 2027: Granite City’s special federal protection against closure, idling or sale expires on that date unless another form of protection or commitment is established.
Capital investment: Local leaders will be looking for a facility-specific commitment that extends beyond the current restart of Blast Furnace B.
Blast Furnace A: A restart would be the clearest operational sign that U.S. Steel sees Granite City as a larger long-term steelmaking asset rather than a one-furnace operation.
Steel demand: The U.S. demand outlook is positive but modest, making customer orders and regional market conditions critical to any second-furnace decision.
Employment: The durability of the approximately 400 jobs associated with the 2026 restart will become increasingly important as the June 2027 deadline approaches.
ScrapMonster Market Read: Granite City is in a stronger position than it was a year ago: Blast Furnace B is producing again, hundreds of workers returned and U.S. steel demand is running above 2025 levels. But the plant still carries a structural disadvantage inside the Nippon-U.S. Steel agreement. Its federal protection expires in June 2027 rather than 2035, and the publicly filed investment schedule does not identify a dedicated Granite City capital allocation. That is why the current contract negotiations matter beyond the 19.3% wage proposal. For Local 1899, the more valuable outcome would be a labor agreement paired with a credible operating and investment plan that gives the plant a reason to remain open after the federal clock runs out.
Sources: U.S. Steel; United Steelworkers; U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings; World Steel Association; American Iron and Steel Institute; St. Louis-area reporting.
