Steelworkers say Canada’s tariff response must keep workers working and strengthen industrial capacity

TORONTO, Aug. 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- United Steelworkers union (USW) National Director Marty Warren issued the following statement on the federal government’s announcement of new countermeasures and supports for workers and businesses affected by U.S. tariffs:

“Canada was right to hold the line rather than accept a bad deal. We have said from the beginning: no deal is better than a bad deal.

Today’s announcement is a step in the right direction, but our response must be about more than retaliation. It must protect workers and strengthen the industries that sustain Canada.

Canadian workers did not create this trade war and should not bear its cost.

The Employment Insurance and worker-retention improvements are welcome and we will keep pushing to ensure they meet workers’ needs amid layoffs and reduced hours.

Industry support matters, but public support for large companies must be tied to protecting Canadian jobs and production and advancing broader industrial goals.

Canada’s countermeasures should pressure the United States while supporting domestic production and avoiding unnecessary costs at home. The federal government should dedicate revenue from retaliatory tariffs to workers and domestic industry, including income supports, job retention, training and investments that maintain Canadian employment and production.

The Steelworkers will continue to push for an industrial strategy that creates demand for Canadian-made products, builds our industrial capacity and diversifies trade while supporting and protecting domestic production.

Canada should remain ready to negotiate, but from a position of strength while protecting workers, keeping production here and building a stronger, more resilient Canadian economy.”

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.

For more information, please contact: 
Jamey Heath, USW Communications, jheath@usw.ca, 416 997-7209