USW: Santa Claus to Join Refinery Workers Delivering Line 5 Petitions to Whitmer

News provided by

Dec 14, 2021, 14:00 ET

TOLEDO, Ohio, Dec. 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Santa Claus will take a break from his holiday preparations to join workers from Toledo Refining Co. on Thursday, Dec. 16, for a demonstration outside the office of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, where the workers will deliver petitions calling for the continued operation of the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline while the Great Lakes Tunnel Project is completed.

Hundreds of members of USW Local 912 and salaried employees who work at Toledo Refining Co. depend on the pipeline to do their jobs and support their families and communities. Whitmer revoked Enbridge's easement in 2020 and has since supported legal action seeking the closure of the pipeline, which passes through the Straits of Mackinac.

With Santa's help, the workers will deliver more than 1,000 pages of signatures on Thursday asking Whitmer to seek an equitable solution to protect jobs, the economy, and the environment and urge her to allow Line 5 to continue operating until the proposed replacement tunnel project can be built.

In addition to supporting hundreds of jobs and families in the Toledo area, Line 5 is crucial to future supplies of jet fuel for carriers at Detroit Metropolitan Airport as well as of heating oil for residents of Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

WHO: USW Local 912 members, co-workers and supporters
WHAT: Delivery of petitions urging Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to drop her opposition to the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline
WHEN: 11 a.m. to noon, Thursday, Dec. 16
WHERE: Across from Gov. Whitmer's office at 111 S. Capitol Ave., Lansing, Mich., 48933, in front of the Michigan Statehouse near the intersection of South Capitol Avenue and West Michigan Avenue.

Photo and video opportunities will be available.

The USW represents 850,000 men and women employed in metals, mining, pulp and paper, rubber, chemicals, glass, auto supply and the energy-producing industries, along with a growing number of workers in public sector and service occupations.

Contact: R.J. Hufnagel, [email protected], 412-562-2450

SOURCE United Steelworkers (USW)