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David Burritt

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David Burritt
Burritt in 2024
Born
David Boyd Burritt

1954 or 1955 (age 69–70)[1]
St. Louis, Missouri, US
Alma materBradley University
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign
OccupationBusinessman
TitleCEO, U.S. Steel
TermMay 2017-
PredecessorMario Longhi
Board member ofLockheed Martin (since 2008); National Safety Council (since 2018); World Steel Association (since 2021); The Business Council (since 2021)
SpouseLynn Burritt

David Boyd Burritt (born c. 1955) is an American businessman who is CEO of U.S. Steel. Prior to joining U.S. Steel, Burritt spent over three decades at Caterpillar Inc. As head of U.S. Steel, Burritt has overseen the reopening of the Granite City Works steel mill, the acquisition of Big River Steel, investments in sustainable steel production, and the proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japanese-based Nippon Steel.[2]

Early life

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Born in St. Louis, Missouri,[3] Burritt earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Bradley University in 1977 and a M.B.A. from the University of Illinois in 1990.[3]

Career

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Burritt has been CEO of U.S. Steel since 2017.[4] Prior to this, he held various leadership positions at the company, including president and chief operating officer (2017) and CFO (2013-2017). Before joining U.S. Steel, Burritt spent 32 years at Caterpillar, where he was the company's CFO.

During his tenure as CEO, Burritt oversaw the reopening of the Granite City Works steel mill in Illinois in 2018.[5][6] He also led the ratification of a new four-year contract with the United Steelworkers in 2018.[7] In 2021, U.S. Steel completed its acquisition of Big River Steel, a move that Burritt described as creating "the first 'Best of Both' integrated and mini-mill steel company."[8][9] This acquisition followed an initial investment by U.S. Steel in Big River Steel in 2019.[8][9] Years later Burritt announced that Big River Steel Mill was the first ResponsibleSteel site certified in North America and said, “This marks an important milestone on our journey to build a more sustainable future for our customers, company, colleagues, communities and the planet.”[10]

In April 2021, Burritt set a goal for U.S. Steel to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 in support of the Paris Agreement and said “U.S. Steel intends to be a part of the climate solution.” This built on the previous target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions intensity by 20% by 2030.[11]

Burritt led a $60 million investment at its Gary Works, Indiana, facility to install a pig iron caster that will grow production of pig iron.[12] In September 2022 he announced that U.S. Steel had sold green bonds and would be using revenue from the bonds to put toward the construction of its Big River 2 facility in Osceola, Arkansas, with an expected completion in 2024.[13] A month later, he led an investment of $150 million to build a direct-reduced-grade pellet plant at its Keetac iron ore mining and pellet processing facility in Keewatin, Minnesota.[14]

In 2023, Burritt received $16.7 million in compensation for his position as CEO of U.S. Steel. Included in that pay is $1,400,000 s a salary and $4,284,000 as a bonus. The median employee pay at U.S. Steel is $100,156, which is a CEO pay ratio of 167:1 according to SEC filings.[15]

In December 2022, Burritt worked with members of the United Steelworkers union to ratify a four-year contract that would cover 11,000 workers at 13 U.S. Steel locations and included a $4,000 bonus.[16]

Proposed Acquisition of U.S. Steel by Nippon Steel

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Burritt led a deal to sell U.S. Steel to Japan-based Nippon Steel after rejecting a competing bid from U.S.-based Cleveland Cliffs that proposed $35 per share to U.S. Steel shareholders.[17][18] The Nippon buyout proposed to deliver $55 per share to U.S. Steel shareholders and guarantee the significant capital investments and technology sharing needed to ensure strong performance and protect jobs.[19] In April 2024, the $14.9B deal with Nippon Steel was approved by U.S. Steel shareholders.[17]

The United Steelworkers criticized the deal with Nippon, stating it could turn the "iconic American steelmaker" into a foreign-controlled subsidiary.[20] Burritt stands to receive a $70 million bonus if the sale goes through.[21]

U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Sherrod Brown sent Burritt a formal letter on October 2, 2024, in which the senators wrote, "Finally, we are troubled by reports that you are in line to receive $72 million in additional cash and benefits if the deal is completed. . . . If these reports are accurate, they demonstrate a repulsive conflict of interest in which U.S. Steel executives can enrich themselves at the expense of U.S. Steel workers."[2]

On January 3, 2025, President Joe Biden issued an executive order that blocked the proposed acquisition.[22]

Enforcement of Biden's order, which gave the parties 30 days to unwind the transaction, was postponed until June after the companies sued the U.S. president, alleging he violated the constitution by depriving them of due process when he blocked the deal.[23][24]

Nippon and U.S. Steel remain committed to closing the deal.[17][25]

Both companies also sued Cleveland-Cliffs, its CEO, Lourenco Goncalves and the head of the United Steelworkers union alleging illegal, coordinated actions aimed at negatively impacting the deal.[26][27][28]

Affiliations

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Burritt has been on the Lockheed Martin board of directors since 2008,[29] and sits on the audit and compensation committees.[30] In October 2018, he joined the board of directors of the National Safety Council.[31] As of October 2021 he is on the executive committee of the World Steel Association board of directors, and is a member on The Business Council.[32][33]

Personal life

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Burritt has a wife, Lynn.[34]

References

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  1. ^ SEC. "United States Steel Corp 2013 Current Report 8-K". SEC.report. Retrieved 2021-03-02.
  2. ^ a b Letter to David Burritt from U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH). October 2, 2024. United States Senate.
  3. ^ a b "Leadership Detail - www.ussteel.com". www.ussteel.com. Retrieved 2021-02-08.
  4. ^ "David Burritt named US Steel president, Mario Longhi remains as ceo | Metal Bulletin.com". www.metalbulletin.com. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  5. ^ Jr, Berkeley Lovelace. "US Steel CEO: We're reopening an idled plant and bringing back 500 jobs due to Trump tariffs". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  6. ^ Madhani, Aamer (March 8, 2018). "U.S. Steel: Trump tariff means we'll re-open plant". The Argus-Leader. Sioux Falls, South Dakota. p. B5. Retrieved July 30, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "U.S. Steel Ratifies new Four Year Agreements With Steelworkers". Fox21Online. 2018-11-13. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  8. ^ a b Smalley, Megan (December 8, 2020). "US Steel acquires Big River Steel". Recycling Today. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Newsdesk, Region 8 (January 18, 2021). "U.S. Steel completes Big River Steel acquisition". KAIT8. Retrieved March 22, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ "U.S. Steel facility first steel mill in North America to win certification from ResponsibleSteel". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  11. ^ "U.S. Steel announces goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050". WPXI. 2021-04-21. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  12. ^ Avila, Larry (2022-06-02). "$60 million investment by U.S. Steel will add 25 new jobs at Gary Works • Northwest Indiana Business Magazine". Northwest Indiana Business Magazine. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  13. ^ "US Steel receives green funding toward Big River 2 mill". Fastmarkets. 2022-09-27. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  14. ^ "U.S. Steel's $150 million DR-grade pellet plant headed for Keetac". Duluth News Tribune. 2022-07-29. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  15. ^ "President & Chief Executive Officer David B. Burritt salary at UNITED STATES STEEL CORP". Salary.com. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
  16. ^ "USW members ratify new contract with U.S. Steel". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  17. ^ a b c Isidore, Chris (2024-04-12). "US Steel's shareholders just voted to end more than a century of American ownership. It may not matter | CNN Business". CNN. Retrieved 2025-01-28.
  18. ^ Tiwary, Shivansh (December 18, 2023). "Japan's Nippon Steel to acquire U.S. Steel for $14.9 billion". Reuters.
  19. ^ "U.S. Steel shareholders approve $14.9 billion buyout by Nippon Steel". CNBC. 2024-04-13. Retrieved 2025-01-28.
  20. ^ Lynch, David (January 6, 2025). "Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel sue Biden administration over blocked deal". Washington Post.
  21. ^ "Greedy, Reckless USS Leadership Hits New Lows". United Steelworkers. 2024-09-04. Retrieved 2024-11-27.
  22. ^ "Biden blocks $14 billion acquisition of US Steel by Japan's Nippon Steel". AP News. 2025-01-03. Retrieved 2025-01-28.
  23. ^ "U.S. Steel, Nippon allege Biden violated constitution in lawsuit over blocked deal". CNBC. 2025-01-06. Retrieved 2025-01-28.
  24. ^ Alper, Alexandra (January 6, 2025). "U.S. Steel, Nippon sue Biden administration over decision to block merger". Reuters.
  25. ^ "Biden administration delays enforcing order blocking Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal". NBC News. 2025-01-12. Retrieved 2025-01-28.
  26. ^ Alper, Alexandra (January 14, 2025). "Cleveland-Cliffs eyeing all-cash bid for U.S. Steel, source says". Reuters.
  27. ^ Kimball, Spencer (2024-09-24). "U.S. Steel CEO defends planned sale to Japan's Nippon, believes deal will close on its merits". CNBC. Retrieved 2025-01-28.
  28. ^ Primack, Dan (2025-01-06). "U.S. Steel sues Biden and rival Cleveland-Cliffs over blocked merger". Axios. Retrieved 2025-01-28.
  29. ^ MarketScreener. "Lockheed Martin : Lockheed Martin Nominates David B. Burritt to Board of Directors | MarketScreener". www.marketscreener.com. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  30. ^ "David B. Burritt". Lockheed Martin. Retrieved 2024-12-10.
  31. ^ "New Members Appointed to NSC Board of Directors - National Safety Council". www.nsc.org. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  32. ^ "worldsteel elects new officers and welcomes new members". worldsteel.org. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  33. ^ "The Business Council: Member List". The Business Council. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  34. ^ "David B. Burritt Named Chief Financial Officer at United States Steel Corporation". PR Newswire. August 16, 2013. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
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