The United Steelworkers (USW) announced that the union has made an initial contribution of $100,000 for relief to the hard-hit victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Thousands of Steelworker members live and work in the Gulf area most affected by the hurricane, and many are in immediate need of temporary shelter, food, and medical supplies, the union said, as well as longer-term help in repairing damage to their homes and replacing furniture that was destroyed.

The union contributed $50,000 directly from the international, which was matched with an additional $50,000 from the Steelworkers Humanity Fund in Canada.

In a communication to all USW local union presidents and recording secretaries, the international has urged members and the union's locals to add their contributions to the USW's initial $100,000 seed money for the relief effort. "While our members are certainly free to contribute to the American Red Cross and other organizations," the union said, "we strongly urge them to make their contributions to the Steelworkers Charitable and Educational Organization," the union's nonprofit charitable supporting organization.

The USW has appointed a Katrina relief committee to coordinate the organization's relief effort and maximize its effectiveness. Members of the committee will include Directors Connie Entrekin, Don Langham and Gary Beevers, along with the Presidents of the Locals in the areas that are most affected and representatives of the Secretary-Treasurer's office.

The union said that its Directors have been busy calling the locals in their jurisdictions to get an assessment of damage, but communications are very difficult because many telephone lines are down. "What we do know," said USW President Leo W. Gerard, "is that many of our members, including some International staff, were evacuated, their homes are flooded and they may not be permitted back to their neighborhoods for 30 days or more."

The union added that most of the companies its members work for — oil refineries, steel mills, paper mills and a large variety of manufacturing facilities — were able to shut down before Katrina hit, but now water and wind damage and lack of electric power are preventing them from restarting.

Local unions that are geographically close to the disaster area are being encouraged to offer shelter, or to work with communities to make available much-needed equipment and building supplies.