Employment, security, decarbonization: the CGT announced a national day of action on Wednesday “for the defense of the steel industry”September 13. The initiative came from a call by the global union network of the ArcelorMittal group, the world’s second largest steelmaker, to denounce “the drift of industrial and social policy” of the group, indicated the CGT. The discontent of the ArcelorMittal unions started from the serious accident (46 dead) in one of its coal mines of Kostenko, near Karaganda, in the center of Kazakhstan in October 2023.
In France, where the group employs some 15,400 people, the CGT is concerned about the «respect des engagements» decarbonization of the Dunkirk and Fos-sur-Mer sites, “as well as maintaining production and employment capacities”. ArcelorMittal received the green light from the European Commission last year to receive €850 million in public aid to decarbonize its Dunkirk site. The union, which claims to have alerted the government for many months, deplores the lack of listening by the public authorities on these issues.
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“We are not reassured about the future”
Given the social difficulties encountered by various companies in the sector (Valdunes, Ascométal), the CGT metallurgy federation “decided to extend this day of action to the entire steel sector”. “We are absolutely not reassured about the future”declared Philippe Verbeke, in charge of the steel industry at the CGT Metallurgy Federation, who notably mentioned a draft social plan in the stainless steel branch of ArcelorMittal in France, the Aperam company, on the Gueugnon site (Saône-et-Loire). Concerning ArcelorMittal, he mentioned fears for employment at the national level and in particular on the Fos-sur-Mer site, which employs 4,000 people (2,500 Arcelor employees, 1,500 employees of subcontractors).
The site “has been running with only one blast furnace out of two for a good year”recalled Philippe Verbeke, also national coordinator of the CGT (leading union) for the group, where his union is calling for walkouts “two hours minimum” on September 13, and at several simultaneous rallies at noon, in front of the ArcelorMittal Dunkerque, Fos-sur-Mer, Reims and ZF Florange sites. It was also an opportunity to put pressure on management to confirm its decarbonization projects: “We expect a response by the end of the year”said Philippe Verbeke.
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