Illegal dumping of foreign-made tin mill products — when a company or country exports these products at a price lower than the price charged in its home market — has cost thousands of workers their jobs over the past few years. And it’s rapidly wiping out the rest of an industry crucial to the nation’s economy and security. None of this would happen if the federal government just enforced the trade laws already on the books and prevented China, along with a handful of others, from flooding U.S. markets with cheaply made tin.

Workers at U.S. Steel’s East Chicago and Gary tin mills faced an uphill battle against foreign producers that not only pocket illegal subsidies from their governments but also pay low wages, cut corners on safety and pollute the environment.

As a result, U.S. Steel idled its East Chicago facility in 2019 and its nearly 100-year-old Gary mill last spring, displacing USW members who made tin sheet for bottlecaps, jar lids and food cans. Many of these union members slashed household spending, put off retirement plans and took lower-paying, nonmanufacturing jobs after having the rug pulled out from under them. Some now juggle two jobs to make ends meet. Others are still figuring out their next steps, which may involve relocating their families.

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