Steel industry in meltdown after new US regulations: study

In the face of an unprecedented economic slowdown, steel industry workers are facing a fresh round of layoffs, with one in five of those expected to be laid off.

The National Steelworkers Union has warned that thousands of jobs could be lost in the United States.

A new study by the Institute for Supply Management found that the steel industry in the US is facing a “death spiral” of job losses, and a number of industry players are saying they may go on strike.

The study found that in the first quarter of 2017, steel production declined by nearly 6 per cent in the three months to March 31.

In contrast, US production increased by almost 8 per cent.

“We’ve lost 7,500 jobs in the past year, and that’s a death spiral,” said Steve Miller, president of the Steelworkers union.

“And the reason we’re losing jobs is because of what the Trump administration has done.”

He added: “There’s no way you can do this job when you’re going to lose the workers.”

The industry in particular is facing problems that are “going to be devastating for our workers and our families”, he said.

US President Donald Trump has called for more steel production to be brought back to levels after the last global recession.

But industry leaders say that while he has a plan to bring back manufacturing, it is not enough.

“There is no such thing as a perfect plan for recovery,” said Brian Goss, president and chief executive of the United Steelworkers, which represents the country’s steelworkers.

Mr Miller also said the industry’s biggest threat comes from climate change, saying it is a global problem and needs to be addressed “on a global scale”. “

You get out of that economic crisis, you have to rebuild the economy.”

Mr Miller also said the industry’s biggest threat comes from climate change, saying it is a global problem and needs to be addressed “on a global scale”.

He said: “We are seeing an enormous amount of climate change affecting our industry, and I think that’s why it’s important that we’re making investments and investing in the right places.”

It is not the first time that the US has seen a large number of steel workers go on a strike.

In February 2017, around half of the 3,000 workers in the San Francisco area took a week off to protest against a $2.3bn plant that was being built at the time.

More than 1,200 people, including many firefighters, went on strike for a week.

The steel industry has also been facing issues from the end of the Great Recession.

In December 2008, the US lost $6.5bn in value and unemployment rose to an 11-year high of 10.7 per cent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The number of manufacturing jobs in New York City, home to about two-thirds of the country, fell to 5,500 in May 2017 from 11,200 at the end in 2016.

The New York Steelworkers had been planning a walkout after Trump’s inauguration.

“I’ve been telling my staff that this is not a time to rest on our laurels, and we’re not going to take it any longer,” union president Jim Reardon told the New York Post.

“Trump has put our country and the American worker at risk, and the sooner he is gone the better.”

The new study found: “Over half of all new steel jobs are likely to be lost between now and 2021, and nearly 1 in 5 new steel-related jobs will be eliminated in the next 10 years.”

The survey also found that there is a “high likelihood” that the number of American jobs at risk of being lost will be in the manufacturing sector, which includes steelmaking, aluminum and the auto industry.

The report also said that there were “substantial uncertainties” over the next five years as a result of the Trump Administration’s plans to revive the steel sector.

It said the US could see a “significant impact” on its trade relationship with Europe.