TORONTO – The United Steelworkers union (USW) welcomes the federal government’s new measures announced Wednesday to support Canada’s steel and softwood lumber sectors, calling them a meaningful step forward in the face of U.S. tariffs and global market instability.
The package includes tighter import controls, a 25% surtax on steel derivatives, strengthened border enforcement, expanded liquidity supports for softwood producers, a top-up to the Work-Sharing program, lower interprovincial freight costs, and new domestic-content requirements for federal projects.
“These measures respond to several priorities that the Steelworkers have been raising for months,” said Marty Warren, USW National Director. “If properly enforced, tighter import controls and the new tariffs on derivative products will help create real room for Canadian steel in our domestic market. The announced CBSA steel compliance team is a positive step, but it must be properly funded and staffed to ensure it properly delivers for workers.
The union underscored that the Work-Sharing top-up – raising income replacement from 55% to 70% – will help workers stay on the job during temporary downturns and also pointed to the importance of strengthening procurement rules.
On softwood lumber, the union welcomes the government’s efforts to improve access to financing and create some additional domestic demand. “These supports will give some breathing room to mills that have been under enormous strain,” Warren said. “But let’s be honest, forestry towns cannot rebuild on temporary fixes. A long-term resolution to the softwood lumber dispute with the United States is essential. Without it, workers and communities remain vulnerable to decisions they cannot control.” Warren added that as the government launches its new Forestry Sector Transformation Task Force, workers must have a seat at the table, and the USW expects to be included.
The USW will continue advocating for a stronger, more consistent domestic-content framework that ensures public investments support Canadian workers and communities and continue pressing for productive investments industrial capacity, stronger EI and Work-Sharing supports, and a durable softwood lumber agreement through future CUSMA negotiations or a dedicated softwood track.
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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