An economic analysis of a proposal to impose a on steel into the united states indicated that the quota would save 3,700 jobs in the steel industry but cost about 35,000 jobs in other u. s. industries. a quota on steel imports would cause employment to fall in other industries because what happens to the costs of producing goods that use steel? source: study cited in douglas a. irwin, free trade under fire, princeton, nj: princeton university press, 2002, p. 82. the quota ▼ raises lowers the costs of producing goods that use steel.