Government must protect Stelco pensioners from US Steel’s attempts to escape obligations: NDP

NDP MPP Paul Miller called on the government during question period today to stop US Steel’s raids of the former Stelco plants in Hamilton and Nanticoke and to protect the thousands of pensioners whose retirements have been endangered by the company’s actions.

“The pensioners who put 30 to 40 years of their lives deserve every penny of what US Steel owes them. These employees agreed in good faith that part of their compensation would be in the form of company pension contributions. That is, Minister, deferred wages, which they negotiated,” said Miller, MPP for Hamilton East – Stoney Creek. “They have been told by the judge overseeing the credit protection process that the court has no ability to ensure that the pensioners will get what is owed to them ahead of the US parent company, which, in a terrible situation, as predicted, is raiding the corporation, removing parts, heading back to the States and scrapping the parts in Hamilton—outrageous.”

“This is theft, Minister. How is this government going to protect those pensioners?” asked Miller.