The head of Cleveland-Cliffs, the American parent company of Stelco, has rejected demands to put the brakes on layoffs at the Hamilton, Ont.-based steelmaker.
The company plans to lay off as many as 500 unionized workers at its Hamilton operations. The Canadian government is threatening legal action, but analysts and the union representing steelworkers say court action will take too long to help workers affected now.
Some politicians are also now calling on the federal government to nationalize Stelco.
"We are in a unique moment in history here in Canada and in Ontario and in the world," said Marit Stiles, the leader of the Ontario New Deomocratic Party. "And the situation with Cleveland-Cliffs is one that demands bold and ambitious and urgent action."
Stiles is one of the political leaders along with union members demanding immediate action, after saying Cleveland-Cliffs broke its commitment to maintain the number of unionized workers in Hamilton for five years after it acquired Stelco in 2024.
"Today I’m calling on [Premier Doug Ford] to work with the federal government to push Cleveland-Cliffs to give up their ownership interest in Stelco and establish public ownership and Canadian management," she said.
Ron Wells, the president of United Steelworkers local 1005, echoed the feelings of betrayal.
"Christmas is coming up; we just had Thanksgiving, and so that was hard for some families," Wells said. "But the overriding emotion is anger. We feel we’ve been betrayed by Cleveland-Cliffs. We feel like we’re pawns in this trade war and we don’t appreciate being used this way."
Industry Minister Melanie Joly gave Cleveland-Cliffs five days to respond, saying she expects the company to meet its commitments to Stelco employees. But CEO Lourenco Goncalves, a proponent of tariffs, didn’t wait that long, saying he’s prepare to fight the allegations in court.
"We didn’t even need the five days that she gave," Goncalves said. "Because it is so absurd that ... it’s easy to counter."
Goncalves insisted the layoffs are temporary until there is a Canada-U.S. trade deal.
"There is no provision in the contract that I have to keep employment at a certain level every single day of the five years," he said. "If that was an imposition of the Canadian government, I would not have accepted."
Union leaders say that’s against the spirit of the deal.
Ford has been silent on the issue in recent weeks. But in late August, he didn’t hold back about what he thought of the Stelco owner.
"Maybe they should find a new owner for Stelco," Ford said. "Maybe we should just buy them. And why doesn’t he just say in the U.S. because I’m done with this guy."
Canadian government lawyers are considering their options. Meanwhile, union leaders are asking steelworkers facing layoffs to try to be patient and hold on.
