EVELETH — United Steelworkers have ratified a new labor contract with Cliffs Natural Resources.

It covers about 2,000 workers at United Taconite and Hibbing Taconite in Minnesota and the Tilden and Empire mines in Michigan. The contract is retroactive to Oct. 1, 2015 and expires Sept. 30, 2018.

A tentative agreement was first announced in August. According to a press release, negotiations have been in the works for about one year.

Cliffs is a major supplier of iron ore pellets to the North American steel industry from its mines and pellet plants.