United States Steel Corp. announced that approximately 500 employees have elected to retire under a Voluntary Early Retirement Program (VERP) offered to certain non-represented Headquarters and Operations employees in the U.S. who met age and years-of-service criteria. The retirement date for most employees will be Feb. 28. Among those who elected to retire are a number of executives. As a result of this program, U.S. Steel will restructure its workforce and leadership ranks to meet current business needs using a comprehensive succession plan.

U.S. Steel expects the restructuring to save the company approximately $50 million annually once it has been fully implemented. The VERP is one element of a wide-ranging plan the company implemented to conserve cash and lower costs due to the current global economic environment.