The Alton Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau’s Travel Guide has been honored by the  Illinois Department of Tourism. (Photo courtesy of the visitalton.com)

Tariff could take effect this week as 500 steelworkers to be recalled

Citing the Trump administration’s plan to levy tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel Corporation on March 7 announced plans to reopen one of two blast furnaces at its idled Granite City Works.

That will entail the recall of 500 laid-off employees, company spokespersons said. However, the restart process could take up to four months and no firm timetable was announced for the employee recall.

Presidents Donald Trump specifically mentioned the Granite City steel works as he formally announced his intention to implement the tariffs during a White House meeting on March 8.

The new tariffs are tentatively stated to take effect on about March 23.  Under federal law, stakeholders have up to 15 days to appeal tariff implementation or similar actions.

More than 2,000 works at the U.S. Granite City plant were issued layoff notices in November 2015, with company officials citing poor market conditions made due to a glut of low-priced foreign steel flooding the United States market and a downturn in the petroleum industry.

A skeleton crew of around 400 workers remained employed at the plant, mostly its steel finishing operations. About 220 workers were rehired in mid-February 2017. A total of about 100 workers have been called back to the mill over the intervening months. As of this month, there are about 730 workers mostly in the finishing area.

The Granite City U.S. Steel mill produces hot-rolled, cold-rolled and coated sheet steel products used in the petroleum, construction, piping and tubing, and automotive industries.

In addition to the tariff, U.S. Steel cites generally improving market conditions for the restart of blast furnaces operations at its Granite City facility.

Canada, the largest exporter of steel to the United States, and Mexico will remain exempt from the new tariffs pending the outcome of ongoing renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

The City of Waterloo’s “Solarbration”  held Aug. 21 at the Monroe County Fairgrounds is the winner of a Illinois Department of Tourism 2018 Best Event or Festival award. (Photo courtesy of city of Waterloo)

Waterloo “Solarbration” honored for eclipse event

The City of Waterloo’s “Solarbration” is the winner of a Illinois Department of Tourism 2018 Best Event or Festival award — arguably deeming it, dollar for dollar, the best solar eclipse event in the state.

The Aug. 21 eclipse viewing party at the Monroe County Fairgrounds attracted some 7,500 from nine foreign countries (Bolivia, Canada, England, India, Ireland, Russia, The Netherlands, Turkey and Wales), at least 285 U.S. cities and 26 states, according to the department.

In addition to a chance to experience the Great Eclipse of 2017 within its path of totality — with 2 minutes and 10 seconds of total darkness — the event featured live music, local food and merchant vendors, free eclipse viewing glasses, and live coverage on St. Louis radio station KTRS (550 AM), with nationally known broadcaster Jon Grayson as emcee.

“As a small community it feels pretty good to attract that many people from all across the country and nine other countries,” said Sarah Deutch, community relations coordinator for the city. “It’s quite an honor to be recognized for the hard work we put into the event.”

The solar eclipse party nearly doubled the population of the town — normally 10,000, the tourism department notes.

In addition to overall honors as the best event in its class, the Solarbration garnered awards for several specific elements of event planning or execution including best social media marketing.

The award was announced Feb. 26 during the 2018 Illinois Governor’s Conference on Travel & Tourism in Chicago. It was officially received during the Waterloo City Council meeting of March 5.

The Illinois touring department annually honors tourism effort across the state, distinguishing between those with high dollar, or “A” level, budgets (over $500,000) and those with smaller, or “B” level, budgets (under $500,000).

The Waterloo Solarbration was honored as the state’s best event or festival last year with a total budget under a half-million dollars. However, its staff was recognized for the best social media effort for an event of any size.

The Carbondale Convention and Tourism Bureau took home the tourism department’s “Best Leisure Collateral Budget B” award for its Total Solar Eclipse event.  While that event drew more than 15,000, Carbondale Tourism’s budget was used in large part to supplement the work of the event’s primary organizer, Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Also honored this year was the Alton Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau’s “All Around Alton” Travel Guide, which the department deemed the best large budget tourism publication in the state.

Alton teacher vote to strike

Members of the Alton Education Association voted to authorize issuance of an “intent to strike” notice March 12 after contract negotiations with Alton Community Unit School District 11 broke down.  Salary is the main issue, both sides agree.

However, no strike date has been set and the earliest a walkout could occur would be mid-April.

The Federal Labor Relations Authority mediator working with the teachers and school district must still officially declare an impasse and notify the Illinois Education Labor Relations Board (IELRB). Both sides would then be required to submit final contract proposals to the IELRB, and the board must publicly post both offers on its website for 14 days prior to any walkout.

–Metro East News Briefs–