Steelworkers in District 6 consistently show the strength of solidarity – winning victories, supporting each other in tough struggles and building momentum for the future. Our daily work is driven by a simple truth: we are stronger together.
This year, we marked 30 years of celebrating Black History Month in the United Steelworkers. The theme, Gifted and Black: Celebrating Potential and Promise, brought members together to reflect on leadership and resilience, reinforcing our commitment to an inclusive labour movement.
District 6 members continue to deliver results at the bargaining table. Members of USW Local 3505 ratified a new four-year collective agreement with Slacan Industries, demonstrating the power of workers standing united and the strength of collective bargaining.
In Northern Ontario, members of USW Local 6500 secured a significant victory in a long-fought Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) case. This outcome represents an important step forward for injured workers and reinforces the need for fairness and accountability within the workers’ compensation system.
Members of USW Local 2020, bus drivers in the Nipissing-Parry Sound region, ratified a new collective agreement, ending their courageous two-month strike by achieving wage and working condition improvements in Northern Ontario’s student transportation sector.
International solidarity remains central to our work. A recent delegation to Mexico strengthened partnerships to advance labour rights under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), helping ensure that workers’ rights are respected across borders and that trade agreements uphold fair standards.
We honoured the legacy of the late Leo W. Gerard and recognized Roxanne Brown as the first female International President of our union, both of whom inspire our ongoing work.
The challenges facing workers are real, but our solidarity is stronger. Together, we will keep organizing, bargaining and fighting for fairness – because when workers stand united, we are stronger together.
In solidarity,
Kevon Stewart
USW District 6 Director
This article appears in the Summer 2026 issue of USW@Work magazine.
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First published on globeandmail.com on October 22, 2026 By Marty Warren, Special to the Globe and Mail Marty Warren, the Canadian national director of the United Steelworkers union. As I write, more workers at Hamilton’s Stelco steel mill are being laid off. In all, the plant’s U.S. owner, Cleveland-Cliffs Inc., will cut up to 500 jobs. This, […]
Union representing laid-off workers makes no apology for helping enforce Canadian law TORONTO – The American CEO of the company that owns the Stelco steel mills laying off Canadian workers accused the United Steelworkers union (USW) of “colluding” with the federal government. “Damn right we’re colluding with Ottawa,” said USW national director Marty Warren. “Like […]
As Canada continues to face many challenges on the global scale, continued progress on issues affecting Indigenous workers and communities must remain a priority. In this context, the Steelworkers Humanity Fund (SHF) has been building partnerships with Indigenous nations across Canada, reflecting our union’s commitment to reconciliation. Through this work, the SHF connected with the […]