Last fall, LTV said it would close the plant in mid-2001, claiming the taconite in the mine was almost exhausted. But in December the company announced the operations would be shut in February. LTV filed for bankruptcy at the end of the month and on January 3 said it would close the plant immediately.

"LTV workers I have talked to say that they are mad about the lies that the company gave out," said T.J. Sabie, an iron ore miner at the Inland Steel Mine here. "The drill operators and other LTV miners knew that there was still good taconite left in the mine."

"They lied to everybody," said a laid-off LTV worker, an auto mechanic with 12 years service who asked that his name not be used. "They have been lying for a long time. The company got the union to drop two grievances with the understanding the mine would continue operation until later this year." The first grievance claimed the company violated its contract with the union by purchasing taconite pellets from other suppliers. The other said that the layoff of 100 hourly workers and the decision to close the taconite plant violated basic labor agreements between the company and the union.

The company and capitalist politicians blame steel imports and competition from other countries as the reason for the closing. According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, "LTV officials have blamed the closing on an influx of cheap foreign steel, lower steel prices, and lower demand for its products." At a meeting with high school students at East Mesabi High School, U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone "spoke of fair trade policies and his desire to halt cheap imports that have flooded American markets. 'I'm opposed to trade policies that hurt American workers.' he said. 'I'd like to see politicians who keep talking about free trade start talking about fair trade,'" the Mesabi Daily News reported.

The steel industry worldwide is in the midst of fierce competition due to the fact that companies are producing 60 million tons more steel each year than is being purchased. Companies that have relatively older or less profitable plants as compared with rivals at home or abroad, such as LTV, are likely to close or cut back production as price competition intensifies. For example, an article in the Star Tribune estimates LTV will save $2 to $3 million a week by shutting down its operations here. LTV is the ninth steel company in the United States to file for bankruptcy over the past two years.

A number of LTV workers here say the plant closing is due to poor management and lack of repair of parts at the facility.

In the early 1980s thousands of miners were laid off because of the introduction of new machinery and excess capacity in the industry. Since 1979, employment of taconite miners in Minnesota has dropped from 16,000 to 6,000.

The layoff of the 1,400 members of the United Steelworkers of America will have a big impact on their families and on Iron Range communities. According to laid-off and retired miners, wages at the LTV mine averaged between $15 and $20 per hour. There are few other jobs in the area that pay a comparable wage. "I've been trying to get hired by LTV for years," said Jason Velacich, 28. "When the company filed for bankruptcy in 1986 they messed over my father on his pension. My family went through two years of hell. Many of the laid-off miners will stay here because their families are here."

Pressure on capitalist politicians to deal with this crisis was manifest at a Mesabi East High School meeting with Senator Wellstone. A student, Gus Hakala, spoke up. "Your answers to a lot of these questions is, 'I'll do what I can,'" he said. "That's pretty vague. I want to know exactly what you are doing to help." According to the Mesabi Daily News, "Hakala's pointed question spawned a wave of similar queries from frustrated students."

There is a move to introduce legislation to extend unemployment benefits to one year and for iron miners to two years. Iron Range miners are skeptical that much will be done. "The government always comes up short," said one retired miner. "We are worried that the government will permit the company to get out of its responsibilities to pay for pensions," said another.

However, there is no legislation drafted to defend the livelihood of those on the Mesabi Iron Range and in Minnesota who are affected by the mine closing and other layoffs in the state. And there is no sign of legislation that answers the question of government action to replace the lost jobs.  
 
 
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