The incoming United Steelworkers international president is aiming to rebuild solidarity with steelworkers in the Mon Valley who were alienated by the union's opposition to Nippon Steel's purchase of U.S. Steel.
Roxanne Brown, who on Sunday will become the first woman or person of color to lead the 850,000-member union, currently is USW international vice president at large, overseeing the union's public policy and legislative agenda as well as its political work.
As president, she said her goals are to build power for their workers through organizing, growing their ranks and extracting wins for their members through bargaining. The union is diverse, ranging from health care workers to gravediggers, Brown said, along with its namesake steelworkers.
Her ascension to president comes ahead of the expiration later this year of USW's current contract with U.S. Steel, one of multiple major contracts USW will have to negotiate this year.
In an interview on Wednesday, Brown told KDKA-TV that she recognizes there has been a disconnect between international leadership and some rank-and-file steelworkers.
"Right now, we're preparing, we're working on, focused on solidarity with our members in the Mon Valley, so that we can make sure that we are all on the same page, and we're fighting together for the contract that they deserve," Brown said.
For USW, uniting is easier said than done, especially after the past few years. The divisions within the union were highlighted by a rally outside the Clairton Coke Works in October 2024, featuring a large group of union members.
"This incredible deal will solidify all of our jobs for decades to come," said Jason Zugai, the president of USW Local 2227, during the rally.
Zugai's comments at the rally, held in support of the deal, broke with USW international union leadership and its president, David McCall. He and the union had been vocally opposed to the deal, lobbying then-President Joe Biden to block it, arguing it would be bad for workers.
Over the coming months, it became apparent that many other U.S. Steel employees also disagreed with international union leadership, with some working to lobby President Trump to get behind the deal, which he eventually did. Those steelworkers told KDKA-TV they felt the deal with Nippon was their best chance to save their jobs.
"Families don't always agree," Brown said. "Families don't always agree. And you know, this was one of those instances. ... But our goal remained clear, and it's the same goal that we have right now. Steel production in the Mon Valley today and into the future, period. Preserving our members' jobs today and making sure that those jobs are there in the future."
She said McCall and USW leadership were able to, because of the merger process, expand the number of commitments and investments Nippon was making in the Mon Valley.
"And for us, that was a win," Brown said.
Multiple steelworkers, including Local 1557 Vice President Richard Tikey, told KDKA-TV they'd like to know what Brown thinks of Nippon, which now owns U.S. Steel.
"That's lived history right now," Brown said. "I don't know that that question even matters today."
The focus now, she said, is about moving forward together, saying that is something that leads to the best outcomes.
"That means us as a union, us with our members in the Mon Valley, us with Nippon," Brown said. "Now we're on the other side of it. We have Nippon, and the goal right now is to work together to make sure that the commitments that were made to our union, to our members, are realized."
Commitments, she said, range from those involving wages, ensuring strong health care for their members, and ensuring promised investments take place.
Multiple steelworkers in the Mon Valley have shared with KDKA over the past two years that they haven't felt heard by their international leadership, with some saying they wanted greater transparency.
When asked how she'd address that and if she planned to try and speak with her rank-and-file members more, Brown said "absolutely."
"It's important that we are together," Brown said. "It's important that we're talking to each other, that we're hearing each other, that they feel heard as we're going into bargaining."
When it comes to bargaining with U.S. Steel, Brown said she hopes to achieve wage gains and get the best health care for workers possible.
Brown was born in Kingston, Jamaica and grew up in White Plains, New York.
She attended Howard University in Washington, D.C. And after running out of money, she said she came to USW in 1999 and never left. She started in the Washington office, where the union's policy shop is located.
"That's really where I cut my teeth," Brown said,"working with the union on all of the issues that impact our members and really focusing in on all of our sectors."
On the executive floor of USW's headquarters, just outside Brown's current office, sit photographs of USW's presidents over the years. They are all white men. Brown is a Black woman.
She said over the years, the demographics of the union have changed, and they are currently the most diverse union in North America.
"I'm just kind of a reflection of what some of our members look like today," Brown said.
Brown said she won't be the first USW president who has not worked as a steelworker. However, it's prompted questions from some local steelworkers KDKA spoke with who have wondered how she can effectively represent them.
"I want them to know how I came up in this union and how I've fought for steelworker jobs in the seats of power in this country," Brown said.
She recalled working to alter an environmental regulation that she said would have had a devastating effect on members and sectors, saying she was successful.
"I spent so much time fixing this policy and fighting on their behalf so that we didn't have massive job losses across those industries," Brown said.
Brown said she worked with the Biden administration on multiple pieces of legislation that had a positive impact on members, including the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, and the CHIPS and Science Act.
"I'm excited by the privilege to be able to do this work," Brown said. "It's a very significant role for a significant union at a really, really critical time in our country."
One challenge she'll face is that many blue-collar workers are shifting to the right, getting behind Mr. Trump in particular. USW traditionally supports Democrats. KDKA asked Brown how that's something she plans to navigate.
"It's really just a values conversation. Honestly, we don't care if you have a D, an R or an I behind your name," Brown said.
The union's values, she said, lie in retirement security, health care, wages, and safety.
"Who we support organizationally are the people who support those things,"Brown said.
One local USW leader who represents steelworkers told KDKA-TV they wished USW international leadership stayed more politically neutral, explaining there's a strain on solidarity locally that comes from how a large majority of the rank-and-file members support Mr. Trump. KDKA asked Brown how that's something they hope to address.
"I think if we focus on issues and not party or people, that is the key," Brown said."I think we just need to keep talking to each other.Nothing beats a one-on-one conversation."
She indicated that finding common ground on the kitchen table issues they care about isn't as hard as it seems.