Today, Governor Martin O'Malley joined with RG Steel CEO John Goodwin and United Steel Workers Union International President Leo Gerard to announce that a line of credit has been secured that will allow the plant to continue to run the recentlyand recall the rest of the laid-off workers.
Read more about the news at Baltimore Brew.
You would think that a situation as complicated as this would take more than a few sentences to explain. It does if you are leveling with the folks. http://dundalkeagle.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=39515:workers-trickle-back-to-sparrows-point-plant&catid=26:front-page
it is great that you are so worried about the environment as am I. So where do you live so that all 2,000 employees of RG Steel and their families can come live with you so that you can support them . That way they can leave the mill closed and improve the environment.
I live in the community of Dundalk which has been a victim of Sparrows Point for years. So are 2000 jobs (if that’s the true number of jobs) worth the price of community lives? If the Point would fix the issues then pay the small fines I would not care to comment on this issue. But they don’t give two sh**s about the community.
A pay check is just one part of this issue. I hope this link may provide some perspective and shed some light on big business and their obligations to their workers. http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/530/1/
RG Steel has some huge issues to overcome. Any long term gains in my opinion are questionable. In Greg's video the governor announces numerous other politicos and where were they? If the news was that conclusive, they would have all lined up in party unity regarding an issue this big. Read the link and look at the overall issues.
The look on the governors face looked like he was waiting for the axe to fall, meaning the tough questions. This credit may cover the existing orders but what lies ahead is another issue. With these kinds of the various mitigating factors yet to be determined, it's the long term that determines the success, not the first quarter. We've all seen what can happen after halftime. By the way nice video clip. Then of course I would not get in your way either as you moved to the front. Must be nice to have that kind of presence. Have to go and take care of mom and watch the game.
He said the bankers will want to see the collateral before making any long term commitment. They are the ones taking the risks, not the governor. If things fall apart as the saying goes you don't throw good money after bad.
Boy, Dutch sure had a mouthful of doublespeak. He forgot about WW II and how the U.S. built the steel mills that now compete against us. He forgot about the trade deficit and cheap labor and how China undercuts our steel business. I guess when you can't put things into the proper prospective, you put them (foot) in your mouth.
My friend from JHU reads Patch on a regular basis and he posed some interesting question's. First he was wondering how many orders do they have for the upcoming year? Next, he was concerned if they were enough to keep the plant running and at what capacity? He said he would then asked to see a strategic plan for the company addressing their long or short term goals? He said if they don't have the answers to these standard business question's, then he would be suspicious of any long term commitment to funding. I noticed the governors rather terse response failed to mention any of these issues.
The one thing that bothers me is when politician's who use this situation to advance their agenda's at the expense of those they have sworn to serve. I think your are correct on both of your points based on the history of the plant and the present day economic situation. Also we are a nation which has become lacking in the number of skilled workers that were the driving force behind our rise to greatness as a world power. Remember this famous quote from WW II: "I fear that all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve. —attributed to Yamamoto in Tora! Tora! Tora!" The irony to that story, we are now the ones that have fallen asleep.