Locked out in Steeltown, U.S.-style

[CHIMO]

HAMILTON—It’s a dark and dismal day, even for December. A handful of locked-out steelworkers huddle around a barrel fire, their clothes reeking of charcoal and faces as leaden as the sky. A wind blowing from the northwest cuts to the bone and, in the early twilight outside the steel plant on Burlington St., the temperature plunges fast.

Soon it will be Christmas, but this year, these men figure it’s going to be a crummy holiday season. They’re among 900 steelworkers who were locked out of their Hamilton plant on Nov. 7 by U.S. Steel Canada. Slouched over and taking deep drags on cigarettes, they could easily pass for figures in a photo from the Dirty ’30s.

These Hamilton workers are receiving $200 a week from their union, Local 1005, “Proud Canadian Steelworkers,” and are struggling to feed families, hold onto homes and pay for heat, light, gas and other essentials. In some cases, credit card bills are over the moon and they’re scared.

“Well, yeah, everybody is pretty worried,” drawls Mike Murphy, 30, stoking the fire with a blackened plank. “You think you’ve got a future, and it all falls apart on you. Man, it’s discouraging. You know, it doesn’t look it but historically this used to be a great place to live and work.”

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/905412--locked-out-in-steeltown-u-s-style?bn=1

[Swede]

1. When you retire,take your vested pension money.

Invest it wherever,but at least it's now your money.