Members of the United Steelworkers (USW) Local 1865 union have ratified a three-year extension to a labor agreement covering about 750 hourly production and maintenance steel operations employees at AK Steel’s Ashland (KY) Works. The new agreement extends the existing contract to 1 September 2013. The existing contract was scheduled to expire 1 September 2010. AK Steel was notified by USW officials that the contract extension passed in voting held recently in Ashland, Kentucky. The terms of the extension are effective as of 1 July 2010. AK Steel said the contract extension also contains new language which allows the company flexibility in operating the Ashland Works to meet market conditions while committing significant capital investments in the steelmaking plant, in particular the blast furnace. The contract extension also provides lump sum payments of USD 1500 to each represented employee covered by the contract in 2010, 2011 and 2012. In addition, the standard hourly wage rates will be increased by USD 1.00 in September of 2010. Hourly production and maintenance employees of the Ashland coke plant are covered by a separate labor agreement which runs through 31 October 2011.