When some steelworkers put their hand up on Thursday morning they were voting themselves out of a job.
At the Fraternity Club at around 9am on Thursday workers at BlueScope voted to give up conditions and accept job losses in an effort to keep the steelworks open.
Lance Turner, a steelworker for 23 years, said some people voted ‘yes’ knowing their jobs would go.
Mr Turner said it was an awful situation for anyone to be in but these workers did so for the good of the region.
“I know a few of my good mates who are going to lose their jobs out of this,” Mr Turner said.
“Even they had to put their hands up because most people saw the bigger picture. If we voted ‘no’ it wasn’t just going to be those of us in the room who has to pay the price, it would be a lot of other people.”
Some sections of the steelworks would be almost stripped bare by a yes vote, Mr Turner said.
For instance the number of workers in the slab yard will drop from 40 down to 14.
“Can you just imagine how hard it was for those guys to sit there and put their hand up?” Mr Turner said.
I know a few of my good mates who are going to lose their jobs out of this. Even they had to put their hands up.
- Lance Turner
There was a lot of tension and anger in the lead-up to the meeting and Mr Turner reckoned they were only two hours away from the ‘No’ vote winning.
It was only during the two-hour meeting that people changed their minds.
“A lot of people believed we were selling out,” he said.
“I don’t think a lot of people really understood the real details. I think the longer the meeting went the more the people started to understand.
“I know some people who walked into the meeting not thinking it was that serious. It brought home the stark reality.”
That reality was simple – see friends lose their jobs of the steelworks closes.
“Personally, I don’t think there could be any worse feeling than to put our hands up to sacrifice so many jobs,” he said.
“Some of them are our friends who are going to be walking out the gate. I don’t think a lot of people understand that.”
The closure of the steelworks would have wrecked the regional economy and Mr Turner felt the community needed to recognise the hit steelworkers took for everyone else.
“How many people do you know would take a hit like we’ve had to take?”
“People should always keep in mind those 400 people who are going to lose their jobs. They’re not going to have the security of money coming in. People should be grateful for what we’ve done.”
