Unifor calls for immediate Canadian countermeasures and investment protections as U.S. doubles steel and aluminum tariffs

Cision Canada

2 days ago

TORONTO, June 4, 2025 /CNW/ - The decision by U.S. President Donald Trump to double tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum imports to 50% is a direct threat to Canadian jobs and economic stability.
Unifor is urging the federal government to act without delay to defend Canada's manufacturing sector and counter the escalating trade assault.
"These tariffs are killing investment in our steel, aluminum, and auto sectors, and we are already seeing the consequences in lost jobs and economic instability," said Unifor National President Lana Payne. "We need immediate and forceful action to defend good jobs and safeguard our national economic security."
The 50% tariff, which came into effect today, doubles the previous 25% duty imposed on Canadian steel and aluminum imports since March 2025. Canada remains the largest supplier of both steel and aluminum to the United States. The U.S. imports approximately a quarter of its steel from Canadian suppliers, while half of all U.S. aluminum consumption originates from Canada.
"These tariffs are a direct blow to aluminum workers in Quebec and across Canada," said Unifor Quebec Director Daniel Cloutier. "They threaten good union jobs and destabilize an industry that plays a critical role in the North American economy. By doubling tariffs on both aluminum and steel, the U.S. is undermining the reliable, high-quality supply it depends on from Canadian workers."
These measures are part of Trump's ongoing misuse of Section 232 of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act, using national security justifications to impose punitive trade barriers.
The increased metal tariffs follow the April 2 introduction of a 25% U.S. tariff on all vehicles manufactured outside the United States, including those made in Canada—despite a deeply integrated automotive supply chain and the near-balanced trade relationship between the two countries. This move directly violates both the spirit and letter of the CUSMA agreement and its automotive side letters. An additional 25% tariff remains in place based on unsubstantiated border and fentanyl claims.
The cumulative effect is wreaking havoc on integrated supply chains, discouraging investment, and threatening jobs in Canada's steel, aluminum, automotive industries and other manufacturing industries.
Soaring metal costs will drive up the price of cars, airplanes, and critical infrastructure, while putting thousands of jobs at risk and dealing a serious blow to manufacturing competitiveness on both sides of the border.
Unifor is calling on the federal government to respond with urgency by:
Enacting immediate retaliatory tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum to match the 50% rate;
Implementing new border measures to prevent unfairly traded or dumped foreign steel and aluminum from entering Canada;
Temporarily halting exports of strategic metals to the U.S. and building a national stockpile reserve;
Strengthening the Foreign Extraterritorial Measures Act (FEMA) to block companies from relocating Canadian jobs in response to U.S. pressure.
"President Trump fails to understand the chaos and damage these tariffs will inflict on workers and consumers in both Canada and the U.S.," added Payne. "This is about economic sovereignty. Canada must respond with strength and urgency."
Unifor warns that further threats by Trump to target aerospace, softwood lumber, energy, pharmaceuticals, microchips, copper, and Canada's film and entertainment sectors demonstrate the need for a broad-based industrial and trade defense strategy.
"This is a defining moment," said Payne. "If we don't defend our industries now, we risk losing them for good."
Unifor is Canada's largest union in the private sector, representing 320,000 workers in every major area of the economy. The union advocates for all working people and their rights, fights for equality and social justice in Canada and abroad, and strives to create progressive change for a better future.