WEST CHESTER, Ohio (AP) — AK Steel Holding Corp. has agreed to settle a lawsuit over a plan to charge retirees from its Middletown Works plant some of the cost of health care benefits, the company said Monday.
The agreement calls for AK Steel to transfer its health care obligations for the covered retirees to a Voluntary Employees Beneficiary Association trust, which will be managed by the retirees, the company said.
The settlement covers about 4,600 retirees and must be approved by the U.S. District Court in Cincinnati, where the retirees had filed their suit.
AK Steel will initially fund the trust with a contribution of $468 million, and with three subsequent annual contributions of $65 million each, the company said.
The initial contribution will take place in the first quarter of 2008, the company said.
