The United Steelworkers union reached a tentative four-year agreement Saturday in negotiations Downtown with ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer.
The union members will review the proposed contract over the next several weeks before taking a final vote on the deal, union spokesman Tony Montana said.
The union represents 14,000 production, maintenance and clerical employees at 14 ArcelorMittal USA plants in eight states along with tens of thousands of retirees.
The union voted last week to authorize a strike if a contract wasn't reached by Sept. 1, when the current contract expires. The union had been negotiating with Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal since April.
Both sides declined to publicly discuss details of the contract, which was negotiated at the William Penn Hotel.
However, according to a summary obtained by The Associated Press, the proposed agreement would provide a lump sum payment of $6,000 following ratification, plus a $1 hourly increase in the first year and 4 percent increases in each of the following three years.
It would provide for an increase in the company's contribution to pensions for current workers and increases for retirees; fixed health care contributions through the life of the contract; and a $3 billion capital investment in ArcelorMittal plants.
Some of the sticking points were premiums for retiree health care, company contributions to a trust fund for health care, employee incentives, a profit-sharing agreement and capital investments, the union has said.
"We believe that ratification of the proposed agreement is a major step toward rasing the industry standard in wages, benefits and other contractual protections without sacrificing the long-term viability of ArcelorMittal in a competitive market," Steelworkers District 1 Director David McCall said in a statement.
Montana said much of the contract would be retroactive if it's approved, which should take about 30 days.
"We are pleased to have a new, tentative agreement with our partners at the USW. We believe that we have reached a positive outcome for all parties involved without disruption to our business operations," said Michael Rippey, president and CEO of ArcelorMittal USA.
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