Zekelman Industries celebrates anniversary and continuation of Section 232 duties on steel with employee bonus

CHICAGO (March 19, 2021) — Zekelman Industries, North America’s largest independent steel pipe and tube manufacturer and a leader in modular construction innovations, announced today that every employee will once again receive a $1,000 annual bonus.

CEO and Executive Chairman Barry Zekelman made the following statement in connection with the announcement:

We congratulate the Biden/Harris administration on their support of the domestic steel industry. The tariffs that resulted from the Section 232 investigation regarding domestic steel (conducted under the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended) are critical to level the playing field for domestic producers who too often in the past have been forced to compete against unfairly traded foreign products.

The drop in imports resulting from these tariffs has created tremendous opportunities for domestic steel manufacturers. Zekelman Industries has been able to increase our investments into our business units and communities, hire more teammates and increase our capital expenditures to levels that were unthinkable just a few years ago. Since the 232 tariffs came into effect, we have increased our capital investments more than $350 million over historical levels, hired over 400 new teammates (to full-time, well-paying jobs) and paid over $10.3 million in annual 232 bonuses to our teammates.

We look forward to working with the Biden/Harris administration to develop and maintain trade policies that allow us to continue the investment in our communities and our nation’s future.

The letter to employees reads in part:

The tariffs have led to a significant drop in steel imports and, in particular, pipe and tube imports from countries that have abused and gamed our trading rules for decades. Although the tariffs have been a big help, we continue to see violations and abuse of our trade systems. Without the continued bipartisan support of our steel industry and its consumers, I fear we may slip back to the old days of abuse and attack from foreign bad actors.

We want to thank the Biden/Harris administration for maintaining the 232 tariffs.  We encourage the Biden/Harris administration to further enhance the current international trade system to close gaps that allow continued cheating and abuse. If these tariffs are rolled back it would surely lead to a flood of imports and negatively affect our industry. We would no longer be able to pay these bonuses which we are so proud to do.

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About Zekelman Industries

Zekelman Industries includes the operating divisions of Atlas Tube, Picoma, Sharon Tube, Wheatland Tube, Western Tube and Z Modular. It is the largest independent manufacturer of hollow structural sections (HSS) and steel pipe, and the top producer of electrical conduit and elbows, couplings and nipples in North America. Zekelman Industries delivers a broad range of pipe and tube solutions that build its customers’ success.