United Steelworkers file grievances against U.S. Steel over sale

PITTSBURGH — United Steelworkers said late Friday that it had filed grievances against United States Steel Corp., alleging the Pittsburgh-based company violated the terms of its contract with the union when it agreed to a $14.9 billion sale to Nippon Steel Corp.

The grievances — from the international union based in Pittsburgh along with four local unions — claim U.S. Steel (NYSE: X) didn’t heed the union’s rights under a successorship agreement. It also said that it wasn’t convinced that a holding company based in Houston, Nippon Steel North America, was able to successfully and for the long term meet the terms of the four-year contract that continues even with a U.S. Steel sale.

“Commitments like pensions, profit sharing, capital expenditures, retiree health care and more are all part of the compensation we negotiated in bargaining our contract,” United Steelworkers said in a note to its membership. “Anyone who wants to acquire our facilities must have both the intent and the financial capacity to honor them.”