HAMILTON – The United Steelworkers union (USW) says today’s announcement from Prime Minister Mark Carney reflects major wins for workers – delivering on demands the union has made not only during the current crisis, but over the past decade.
The union welcomes the move to expand and tighten tariff rate quotas (TRQs) on non-FTA countries to 50% of 2024 levels and on FTA countries at 100% of 2024 volumes, with a 50% tariff on excess imports. The USW also applauds the government’s trailblazing measures to address global overcapacity directly – as the USW has called for – as well as the government’s commitment to require Canadian steel in federally funded infrastructure projects – something the union has demanded for years. The USW is also encouraged by the government’s $1-billion commitment through the Strategic Innovation Fund to address domestic steel capacity gaps and build domestic supply resiliency. This is an issue the USW has been bringing attention to for years.
“These are significant wins for our members. We’ve been calling for expanded and tighter import limits since the June announcement and for Buy Canadian rules for years and it’s encouraging to see those demands finally reflected in federal policy,” said Marty Warren, USW National Director. “Mandating Canadian steel in public projects isn’t just good for jobs – it’s good for the environment and for supply chain resilience.”
While today’s plan delivers long-term investments and structural changes the union has long demanded, USW stresses the need for continued vigilance. The union expects to be closely consulted on implementation and calls for ongoing monitoring to ensure the new measures are effective in preventing further harm to Canada’s steel sector.
The USW also recognizes the government’s recent expansions to Employment Insurance but continues to call for further improvements with better access and increased income support for affected workers.
The USW says it will continue to work with the federal government to monitor and review the effectiveness of the TRQ program and the import situation and on building a long-term industrial strategy, but the government still needs to deliver urgent and immediate protections for workers.
“Steelworkers have fought for these changes for years – today’s announcement is a direct result of that pressure,” said Warren.
About the United Steelworkers union
The USW represents 225,000 members in nearly every economic sector across Canada and is the largest private-sector union in North America, with 850,000 members in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean.
Each year, thousands of workers choose to join the USW because of the union’s strong track record in creating healthier, safer and more respectful workplaces and negotiating better working conditions and fairer compensation – including good wages, benefits and pensions.
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