Quebec aluminum plant shuts down due to U.S. tariffs

MONTREAL, BÉCANCOUR, Que. – Alubar, an aluminum rod manufacturer in the community of Bécancour, shut down its operations today, citing the imposition of U.S. tariffs as the direct cause.

The United Steelworkers union (USW), representing 70 workers at the plant, is urging the Quebec and federal governments to swiftly deploy comprehensive action plans that include modernizing Quebec industrial plants, policies to buy Canadian products, diversifying the economy and providing crucial supports to workers. 

“We’ve been talking for weeks about measures to support the economy. What is the concrete plan? Because this morning, we’re the first to be punched in the face, and we need help,” said Jessy Trottier, president of the USW’s local union that represents the workers at Alubar, located near the city of Trois-Rivières.

“This is a brutal attack by the U.S. government,” said Dominic Lemieux, the USW’s Quebec Director.

“Today we’re seeing the first plant shutdown and we fear for what is coming in other sectors of our economy, including wood, steel, processing, manufacturing and auto parts,” Lemieux said.

The USW is calling for concrete policies from both levels of government, including prioritizing domestic procurement policies to ensure that publicly funded infrastructure projects support Canadian jobs, investing in the modernization of industrial plants and the value-added processing of publicly owned natural resources, diversifying markets for Canadian products and above all, ensuring direct supports and a stronger social safety net for workers suffering job losses.

“There’s no room for magical thinking today. The storm has begun and we need our governments to protect workers and good jobs in our economy. We can’t just throw money at companies in this forced transition – we have to modernize our industries and protect jobs,” Lemieux stressed.

The Alubar plant, owned by a Brazil-based multinational, produces aluminum rods from molten metal sourced from the neighbouring ABI aluminum smelter, accounting for about 30% of the smelter’s output. The Bécancour facility’s products are almost entirely exported to the U.S. market.

Alubar’s aluminum rods are subject to the 25% U.S. tariffs imposed this morning on all Canadian exports, and could be subject to the additional 25% tariffs on aluminum and steel due to take effect on March 12.

The United Steelworkers/Syndicat des Métallos, affiliated with the FTQ, is the largest private-sector union in Quebec. It represents more than 60,000 workers in all sectors of the Quebec economy, including steel, aluminum, wood, auto parts, rubber and the entire manufacturing and processing sector.

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