BY TONY DUTROW

FOLLANSBEE, West Virginia - Some 4,500 Steelworkers remain solid in their month-long strike against Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel, the ninth largest integrated steel producer in the United States. The walkout, which began October 1, has shut eight mills in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

No negotiations have occurred since the bosses handed the United Steelworkers of America (USWA) a final offer September 27. That offer incorporated a substandard pension plan that denies the workers the right to retire after working 30 years for the company. The unionists are also demanding a $40-per- year-of-service pension on a par with the other steel companies.

Donald Finley, an operator on the coke mill's railroad here, was walking the picket line October 27. He pointed across the Ohio river to the blast furnaces now silent at the mills in Steubenville and Mingo Junction, Ohio. Finley said the stakes are very high in this and thinks the strike will be a long one. He's got 42 years in the mill.

Wheeling-Pitt, Finley said, has one of the highest profits per ton of steel in the industry. "If we go down on this, then the rest of the pension funds will go down," he said.

Another worker at the mill, Joe Kesegy, who has worked 40 years for the company said, "My pension was frozen at 29 years of service basically and they haven't put a dime into the plan since the l985 bankruptcy changed the agreement to a deferred pension plan."

Two days after the strikers hit the bricks, Wheeling-Pitt company attorneys won a court injunction in Ohio limiting pickets and the next day in West Virginia. Jefferson County, Ohio, Common Pleas Judge Dominick Olivito signed an order October 3 limiting pickets at gates and allowing free access to some traffic in and out of the mill.

Gregg Warren, public relations manager for Wheeling-Pitt charged that this ruling was necessary for the Ohio plants because allegedly certain personnel were holed up in the plants, and stayed "for fear they would be prevented from returning by striking USWA-represented employees."

On October 4, First Circuit Court Judge Steven Narick ordered that West Virginia pickets be limited to eight strikers per gate. His ruling "captures what we asked for in essence," gloated Wheeling-Pitt's corporate attorney.

The ruling claims that the order is needed to prevent "mass picketing and misconduct," specifically at the Follansbee, West Virginia, coke plant. In fact, the union decided to keep the ovens running at the plant to not damage them, to head off this kind of violence baiting. Strikers keep fighting spirit
Steelworkers have not allowed the injunctions to lower their spirit.

During a recent visit, the union hall in Mingo Junction, Ohio, was a beehive of activity. The head cook for the strike kitchen in the union hall basement beamed when he saw the Militant's coverage of the Palestinian struggle.

Hassan Ziad, a Palestinian who was born in East Jerusalem, has been in the United States for 30 years. For 23 of those years he's worked at Wheeling-Pitt and works on the railroad track gang. This is a job the steel giant hopes to contract out. During hard times, Hassan learned the culinary arts and went to work for a nearby hotel. Now he volunteers this skill, training others and keeping a top-notch kitchen open for strikers.

Sharon Lelless has worked in the mill as a production worker in the sinter plant - an ingredient used in blast furnaces to produce steel - for 17 years. She's co-chair of the Women's Committee. Lelless explained that of the l00 women out of the 2,600 workers in the mill, at least l0 are regularly working on the committee. "But most of the 30 women that pull regular duty here are like Cheryl over there painting signs," Lelless adds. Cheryl yells over to the Militant reporters that her fiancee works in the mill.

"To keep our cause in the public eye, we're going to ask everyone to wear blue ribbons," Lelless said. Both she and Cheryl were making giant cardboard blue ribbons with Local 1190 written on them. "We're going to put them on telephone poles, at picket gates, and in store windows."

Strikers set up an informational picket line October 19 at Wheeling Downs, the famous and very profitable dog racing track, 50 precent owned by WHX, which is also part owner of Wheeling- Pittsburgh Steel. One of the colorful, hand painted signs stashed along the wall in the union hall, depicted a greyhound racer number "Local 1190." The caption reads, "Our Pensions are Going to the Dogs."

Sandi Daugherty, who along with Lelless chairs the women's committee, explained that the Wheeling Downs management and WHX went to court to block their action at the popular race track. "We had a great turnout. About 30 of us showed up including strikers from Martins Ferry, Yorkville, and our mill. Also steelworkers from the nearby Ormet titanium mill came to show their solidarity."

"It was pouring down rain, but we held up our flyers and signs though the guards told us we couldn't. They even told us to get rid of the Local 1190 dog, but we kept him on the line," said Daugherty, who works in the cold strip mill.

The October 26 Steubenville Herald-Star reported that Circuit Court Judge Fred Risovich ruled against WHX saying the informational picketers were within their First Amendment right to demonstrate and distribute handbills.

On October 12, the AFL-CIO sponsored a "Stand Up For Ohio Families" rally at the Steubenville Big Red High School to urge the defeat of Republican Congressman Robert Ney. Strikers, who made up the majority of the rally brought hand-lettered signs demanding Ron LaBow, president of WHX, negotiate on the union' pension proposal. "LaBow Stop Hogging the Funds" was painted on one sign held by a striker.

Messages of support and solidarity can be sent to USWA Local 1190, 227 So. Third St., Steubenville, Ohio 43952-2932, (614) 283-3356.

Tony Dutrow is a member of USWA Local 1557 in Pittsburgh. Dave Sandor, a member of USWA Local 3403 from Morgantown, West Virginia, contributed to this article.  
 
 
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