Union workers have ratified a contract agreement with NLMK after being on strike for around six months.

The final vote Monday was 276 to 103. 

The 426 union workers at the Farrell facility went on strike Aug. 22, 2020, claiming unfair labor practices.

Monday night's agreement secured an increase in wages spread out over several years and a choice in employees' health insurance.

"Right now, we're happy," says United Steel Workers Local 1016 president Jim Wells.

But it took more than a year to be able to savor that happiness. Negotiating since then, and on the picket lines since last August, Wells and hundreds of his fellow NLMK workers got the offer they'd been waiting for.

"We actually have the choice of the PPO or HMO, high deductible healthcare plan," he said. "That's what we asked for and that's what we're getting."

Wells said the company's initial PPO plan was far too expensive.
He wanted to secure the choice in coverage not only for the current workers, but those hired on in the future.
Between the months on strike and the COVID pandemic - all while trying to keep food on the table - the waiting truly was the hardest part.

"A lot of people did pick up odd jobs and just did what they had to do," said USW International staff representative Todd Clary. "Because of the donations from area businesses we were able to give gift cards to help out families in need, our international during Christmas gave out gift cards for our members."

Despite securing the health care and wage concessions, union leaders admit neither side walked away from the bargaining table completely happy.
But it was enough to bring the bustling Farrell plant back to business as usual.

"You have to look at the overall of the contract and say 'does this benefit me as an individual?' And that's what we did," said Wells.

"With 400-some employees, you can't just mass bring them all back so it's going to take probably a week, maybe one to three weeks to bring them all back," said Clary.

Union leaders will meet with company officials Tuesday to coordinate the reopening of the facilities and the reactivation of the workers.