Federal NDP Leader Avi Lewis and Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles are urging the federal government to take over Hamilton-based steelmaker Stelco, as layoffs occur that Industry Minister Mélanie Joly claims breach the company’s agreement under the Investment Canada Act.
In a statement on Tuesday, Lewis said it’s crucial for the federal government to act “immediately” after Stelco’s American owner Cleveland-Cliffs went back on its promise to keep the same number of unionized workers and similar numbers of non-union workers for five years when it purchased the company in 2024.
Joly has pledged to take Cleveland-Cliffs to court, stating on Saturday in a post on X that “all options are on the table” as government lawyers evaluate what steps to take next. However, Lewis expressed concern that legal action would be too slow to protect those whose jobs are at risk.
“Canada cannot afford to lose its steel industry,” he remarked. “If we’re serious about saving these jobs and preserving Canadian steel production, we need immediate action.”
An industrial worker walks near the Stelco Hamilton Works on Oct. 9. The American steelmaker announced 300 to 350 layoffs at the plant amid the ongoing Canada-U. S. trade war. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)
Lewis pointed out that the United Kingdom nationalized British Steel in July, emphasizing that this decision safeguarded “thousands of jobs.” In September, the U. K. government also revealed plans for a public takeover of another steelmaker, Specialty Steel.
Lewis also criticized Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves, who has shown support for U. S. tariffs on foreign steel which have contributed to these layoffs, asserting they “are designed to deindustrialize our economy and destroy our manufacturing base.”
Goncalves insists that layoffs comply with legal standards since they are temporary until Canada and the United States finalize a 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,” Goncalves explained during an interview with CBC’s Rosemary Barton Live on Sunday.
“If that was an imposition of the Canadian government, I would not have accepted.”
Ontario NDP Urges Ford for Steel Industry Support
While speaking at Queen’s Park on Tuesday, Stiles urged Ontario Premier Doug Ford to “collaborate with the federal government in pressing Cleveland-Cliffs to relinquish their ownership stake in Stelco and implement public ownership along with Canadian management.”
“The cost of not doing this is thousands of jobs. It’s spinoffs. It’s impacting Hamilton as a whole,” she stated. “The industry will suffer if we allow Stelco to fail.”
In a statement released that same day, Stiles along with her Ontario NDP colleagues from Hamilton – MPPs Sandy Shaw and Robin Lennox – reiterated their call for Ford to “return from break and provide tariff relief for the steel industry,” along with advocating for a “Buy Ontario First” procurement strategy. The Ontario legislature is currently observing a summer break lasting 21 weeks until October 27.
CBC Hamilton reached out to Ford’s office regarding responses about nationalization but had not received any comments by publication time.
When asked last week if his administration might consider such measures, Prime Minister Mark Carney mentioned he would wait for Cleveland-Cliffs’ reply regarding Joly’s request demanding job reinstatements before deciding whether “appropriate action” should be taken.
Since then, however, Cleveland-Cliffs has declined requests to reverse their layoffs.
Experts Suggest Public Ownership Might Be Needed
Nicolas Lamp, an associate professor at Queen’s University specializing in law and policy studies, shared his thoughts with CBC Hamilton last week about why he believes it’s time for government intervention through public ownership before Canada’s expertise in steelmaking vanishes entirely.
“At this moment when Canada aims at building extensive infrastructure projects, it’s essential we don’t let all this knowledge fade away,” he noted.
Lamp highlighted how purchasing Trans Mountain pipeline from Kinder Morgan back in 2018 serves as an example where federal authorities took over major infrastructure from private hands.
Mike Watt , whose career at Stelco spans twenty years , standing outside. the Stelco Hamilton Works on Oct.9 after receiving a layoff notice.(Evan Mitsui /CBC) p >“I’m not saying we should definitely nationalize it,” he clarified. p >“I’d argue that Canadian authorities need to closely examine the reasons behind these layoffs and determine if a more considerate company-one focused both on its employees and Canada’s interests-would behave similarly.” p >Last week , Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre expressed his support for taking legal actions against Stelco. He reiterated those views again Tuesday but emphasized finding solutions through negotiations aimed at removing tariffs would be best approach. p >“Our message to prime minister is get back into discussions towards achieving tariff-free agreements,” he insisted while addressing attendees Windsor earlier today. p >“Workers across companies like Stelco , Stellantis , Ford , plus many others rely heavily upon PM keeping promises made concerning deals.” p >
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