ArcelorMittal strike ruling delayed in Algeria

A court ruling on a management petition opposing a strike by 7,200 workers at steel giant ArcelorMittal's Algeria plant was postponed today, a company official said.

"The judge was due to give his decision this morning on the request by management to suspend the strike but it has been postponed until Wednesday," the official, Mohamed Guedha, told AFP.

The management had yesterday also asked the court at El Hadjar to recognise the "illegality" of the strike, he added.

Workers at the El Hadjar complex in eastern Algeria went on strike on January 12 to protest against the planned closure of the factory's coking plant, which employs 320 people and would cost $40 million to renovate.

An investment plan for 2010-14 worth $200 million, has been challenged by the union on grounds that it does not include the coking plant.

The factory, a subsidiary of the worldwide steel giant, is a former state enterprise in which the Indian Ispat, a firm in the ArcelorMittal group, bought 70 per cent of shares in October 2001.

The factory produced 750,000 tonnes of steel in 2009, according to the management.