The Stel Salaried Pensioners Organization wishes to
thank The Hamilton Spectator for permission to post the following article published
in the June 4, 2005 edition
Some key players in Stelco
mediation talks
The Hamilton Spectator Rolf Gerstenberger Not participating in the talks Position: President of Stelco's largest union local -- United
Steelworkers of America Local 1005, representing 3,000 employees and 12,000
retirees at Stelco's Hamilton plant. Stand: Gerstenberger has flatly refused to join in the mediation
talks. From the moment Stelco gained protection under the Companies'
Creditors Arrangement Act in January 2004, he has refused to accept the
company is even losing money. He insists restructuring is designed to break
labour contracts and gain concessions from workers. "The only thing that
has changed from a year ago is that now Stelco, in four quarters, has
announced $150 million in profits," he said recently. "For us, when
we started out, we said that CCAA is legalized theft, that it is a
fraud." Courtney Pratt Position: Chief executive officer, Stelco Inc. Stand: A Stelco director since 2002, Pratt's rise to president
and CEO began just before the company entered bankruptcy protection. Heralded
early on for his ability to make allies even in the midst of poisoned labour
relations (he is credited with healing such a rift while president and CEO of
Toronto Hydro), Pratt has yet to bring Stelco bondholders and union leaders
onside long enough to make a deal. And a skeptical union's opinion of the
Oakville resident didn't improve when Stelco's fortunes took a sharp turn
this year. The company earned a record $150 million during bankruptcy
protection. Pratt remains committed to restructuring the steel giant and
forging a new relationship with the union. Many say he's still the man to do
it. Bill Ferguson Position: President of United Steelworkers Lake Erie Local 8782,
which represents about 1,000 workers in Nanticoke who have been without a
contract since last summer. Stand: A third-generation steelworker, "Fergie" has
been president of the Lake Erie local off and on for over 15 years. His union
supports a restructuring plan from Brascan-backed Tricap management that
would see $500 million put in the $1.3 billion pension deficit and the rest
paid off in five years. Justice James Farley, the judge overseeing
restructuring, recently rebuffed a union attempt to allow that bid, but said
the mediator could consider it. "We believe our interests are the interests that should
come first (along with) the pensioners in the community. We're the people who
are going to be here tomorrow." Harold S. Stephen Position: Chief Restructuring Officer Stand: A turnaround specialist, Stephen was a central player in
the restructuring of Eaton's and Algoma Steel. Known for his patience, strong
backbone and unwavering focus, hopes were high Stephen could forge agreement
between bondholders, employees, executives and creditors. The former head of
Ernst & Young has faced some bumpy rides in his restructuring voyage, often
having to defend the sincerity of the company's decision to go into
bankruptcy protection. "A restructuring is a situation where everybody involved
doesn't want to be there. It's never a case of trying to beat up on a
particular group.'' The Bondholders Position: Market traders who have purchased bonds issued by the
company or have acquired some of Stelco's debts to suppliers. Stand: The bondholders have been criticized by the union as mere
financial speculators who are not interested in the future of the company,
just getting their money out of it. Represented until now by Toronto lawyers Kevin Zych and Richard
Orzy, above, the bondholders are rumoured to have flown into Toronto from
various locations to take part in the mediation process. Union leaders have said the primary stumbling block in the talks
will likely be forging an agreement between the unions and the bondholders. George Adams Position: Mediator Stand: A Hamilton native and retired judge, this is Adams second
crack at bringing Stelco and its stakeholders together. In June 2004, he was named as a special officer to get the
company and unionized workers talking and to broker a new labour agreement
for the Steelworkers Lake Erie local. He has received wide approval from all stakeholders in the
Stelco drama. Author of several books on dispute resolution, Adams handled
negotiations between Algoma Steel and its workers and creditors and McMaster
University and its Special Investigations unit. Adams served as a Superior Court judge from 1991 to 1997 before starting a mediation business |