KOZ: Trump's Tariffs on Steel and Aluminium also Threaten Jobs in Slovakia

Bratislava, March 14 (TASR) - The introduction of the planned 25-percent tariffs on steel and aluminium by US President Donald Trump's administration threatens European industry and jobs in Slovakia, with the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) therefore calling on EU institutions to create job protection or a permanent investment fund aimed at supporting these jobs in an uncertain geopolitical environment, the Slovak Trade Union Confederation (KOZ) pointed out on Friday on the basis of ETUC data. "Preserving jobs is crucial not only for the steel and aluminium industry, but also for the wider European industrial sector. To protect European production, it is essential to combine support for industrial capacity with specific measures to protect workers. In addition to sectoral support measures, trade policies need to be put in place to prevent unfair practices and price dumping (foreign traders trying to broker goods to the European market at very low prices) of steel and aluminium on the European market," said KOZ. The confederation stressed that tariffs on steel and aluminium could be just the beginning, because if the USA imposed 20-percent tariffs on all EU exports, another 750,000 jobs, mostly in manufacturing, would be at risk. The EU should therefore, according to the trade unionists, create countermeasures in the area of trade policy, expand domestic demand and promote exports to new markets. am