WASHINGTON - On Thursday December 29th, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar was in Silver Bay to meet with residents who have been impacted by the layoffs at Northshore Mining. Klobuchar was also joined by Silver Bay Mayor Wade LeBlanc. 

“Our country was built by miners and their hard work. Workers in Silver Bay want to do their jobs, but right now they’re facing an uncertain future,” said Klobuchar. “I’m working with local legislators to push for the extension of state unemployment benefits and want to see the mine reopened as soon as possible. I’ll continue to support the Silver Bay community through this challenging time.”

In February of 2022, Cleveland-Cliffs announced it would be idling its Northshore Mining operations at the Silver Bay Pellet Plant and Babbitt Mine from May 1st through the fall of 2022. Over 400 employees were impacted by this. On July 22, 2022 Cleveland-Cliffs announced that they would remain idle until at least April of 2023. State unemployment benefits for impacted workers expired in November 2022.

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