International trade

TORONTO – Unifor says Canada must fight back against U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest tariff proclamation targeting Canadian softwood lumber, furniture and cabinetry exports, warning that the move will devastate thousands of workers and communities already battered by years of unfair trade action.

TORONTO- Unifor is urging the federal government to maintain its 100% surtax on electric vehicles imported from China, warning that lifting the measure would deal a devastating blow to Canada’s auto industry at a time of unprecedented crisis.

WINDSOR— Unifor members and local and national leaders joined supporters for a rally today outside Titan Tool & Die in Windsor after the company escalated its lockout of the plant’s veteran workers, removing equipment and raw materials from its Canadian facility, a move the union says signals production shifting to the U.S.

TORONTO– Federal government measures announced today to support workers and sectors hit hardest by U.S. tariffs and trade disruptions include positive steps, but stronger action is still needed to protect workers and build resilient industries says Unifor.

AMHERSTBURG, ON-Unifor is demanding transparency from Diageo, as the company plans to shut down its Amherstburg, Ontario plant while claiming Crown Royal will continue to be mashed, blended, aged, and distilled in Canada for all markets, including the U.S.

VANCOUVER—Unifor leadership led more than 1,500 members and supporters as they rallied at the union’s Constitutional Convention in downtown Vancouver to stand up for Canadian workers.

“We are going to do whatever it takes to protect Canadian jobs from destruction from Donald Trump,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne.

“He wants to steal our jobs, to take our critical resources and undermine our democracy and our very sovereignty and he still sees us as the 51st state. This is the fight of our lives. And I want to be very clear – Trump will not win.”

“Donald Trump’s attacks on Canada’s auto, steel, aluminum and forestry sectors are hitting workers in real time,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “Walking back counter-tariffs is not an olive branch—it’s an open invitation for more U.S. aggression. It sends the wrong signal at the worst possible moment.”

From the outset of this trade war, Unifor has been clear: Canada’s leverage must be used to defend Canadian jobs—not bargained away without reciprocity.

Canadian auto workers are banding together and strategizing as sweeping tariffs from the United States on Canadian vehicles, parts, and raw materials threaten tens of thousands of jobs and billions in manufacturing investment.

In an Aug. 15 national webinar on auto tariffs, Unifor President Lana Payne told auto sector members that the union’s position is clear: If you sell in Canada, you must build in Canada.

“We have been clear that a bad deal, that legitimizes tariffs with the United States is worse than no deal at all right now,” said Payne.