TORONTO – The United Steelworkers union (USW) says the Spring Economic Update includes useful steps on Buy Canadian, skilled trades, defence procurement and the Canada Strong Fund, but more action and clarity are needed to support workers and protect Canada’s industrial base as the trade war with the U.S. continues to threaten jobs, production and communities across key sectors.
“The government has taken several steps in the right direction,” said USW National Director Marty Warren. “But the next step must be building the Canadian industrial capacity needed to turn these commitments into good union jobs. Public investment should support Canadian production, strengthen domestic supply chains and help the communities that depend on these industries.”
The USW says Buy Canadian policies must be backed by a plan to rebuild domestic industrial capacity where Canadian products or suppliers do not currently exist. The Canada Strong Fund could be a tool to help fill those gaps, but its mandate must clearly support Canadian jobs, production and supply chains.
The union says that when public projects require products or materials that are not currently made in Canada, the answer cannot simply be to rely on imports. Those gaps should trigger targeted investments to expand or rebuild Canadian production, including in steel, aluminum, forestry and wood products, mining, manufacturing and other strategic sectors.
The union also says key measures are still missing, including stronger supports for workers facing layoffs, reduced production and uncertainty during the trade war with the U.S., as well as measures to protect Canada’s domestic steel market, such as open-ended and tightened tariff-rate quotas, stronger Canada Border Services Agency enforcement, Buy Clean procurement and a comprehensive industrial strategy.
“Workers in industries hit by tariffs need stronger supports and job-retention conditions attached to public funding,” said Warren. “Canada also needs to protect its domestic market from unfair imports and global overcapacity with stronger enforcement at the borders, Buy Canadian and Buy Clean rules that support domestic production, and a comprehensive industrial strategy that puts workers, Canadian production and Canadian communities at the centre.”
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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