AT 93 years old, Fred Moore epitomises why we need to come together and fight for the Illawarra’s steel industry.
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As Fred so rightly puts it: “We'll never stand by and watch them close down the steelworks because that'd be a disaster for everyone”.
There really is a lot riding on BlueScope’s decision about the future of steelmaking operations at Port Kembla.
It’s a massive deal for a region that has become so accustomed to seeing those big stacks rising from the ground and the steam that can be seen billowing from them during the steelmaking process.
Imagine if that wasn’t there anymore. Imagine if thousands of Illawarra workers no longer had a job in an industry that could have been in their family for generations.
It’s the reality that we, as a region, face. That is unless action is taken now to save an industry that has been synonymous with our proud history.
As a community – and through the Mercury’s #saveoursteelworks campaign – many people are doing what they can to ensure those jobs remain.
We all know how much the 760-hectare Port Kembla steelworks – the largest manufacturing facility in Australia – means to this region.
We’ve already had community campaigns, meetings, petitions and a public rally, but the do-or-die fight is yet to be won. The BlueScope decision is expected to be known by the company’s AGM on November 19.
Now, we await the decisions of government – local, state and federal – to help secure the future of the Port Kembla steelworks and our region as we know it.
“The politicians are where it'll stay and if they let them [steelworkers] down, well they're gone,” Fred says. Only time will tell if that’s the case.
As a union stalwart, Fred has seen many workplace battles like this. He also worries about what using imported steel would mean for our infrastructure.
He explains, on a somewhat sombre note, how he probably won’t be here to see what happens to the projects that use low-quality steel.
However, future generations – some of whom may want to become steelworkers themselves – will be. That’s why this fight is so important.