International trade

TORONTO, Ont.-Unifor is urging Canada’s largest grocery stores, owned by Empire, Loblaw and Metro, to prioritize the purchasing and promotion of made in Canada products in response to the Trump administration’s reckless trade war against Canadian workers. 

In a letter to the CEOs of Empire, Loblaw and Metro, Unifor National President Lana Payne encouraged the grocers to make it easier for shoppers to identify made in Canada products on their shelves to support domestic industries and protect jobs.

TORONTO— Canada must retaliate swiftly and definitively to the unjust imposition of a sweeping 25% tariff on Canadian goods and 10% tariff on energy imported to the United States, says Unifor.

“With the implementation of these tariffs, President Trump has declared a trade war with Canada and with Canadian workers,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “Trump’s decision to go to battle with America’s largest trading partner will hurt working people on both sides of the border and inflict real economic damage to both countries.”

ST. JOHN’S—Unifor participated in Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey’s trade roundtable’s most recent meeting today, calling for swift action to protect workers, particularly in the province’s trade-exposed sectors like oil and gas, forestry and the fishery.

WASHINGTON— Unifor warns that Canada must act to protect workers and Canadian jobs amid the continued threat of U.S. tariffs in the Trump era. 
 

“The looming tariff threat serves as a real wake up call on the need to mitigate the risk to Canadian workers,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. 
 

President Trump indicated that he may move ahead with a 25 per cent across-the-board tariff on Canadian goods as soon as February 1, 2025. 
 

Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, P.C., M.P.
Prime Minister of Canada

Dear Prime Minister,

RE: Considering Canada’s Response to U.S. Tariffs

Unifor National President Lana Payne shared her determination to fight for Canada's workers at Ontario Council this past weekend. "We will be the voice of workers and good jobs as we climb this mountain, as we navigate the very difficult days ahead, as we force governments and the business community to understand there is nothing normal about these times."

Representatives from auto worker unions in Canada, Mexico and the United States of America joined together at the first ever Tri-national Auto Workers Summit, held in Mexico City November 18-19, 2024. 

Standing Committee on International Trade (CIIT)

“Recent Developments Concerning the Canada–United States Softwood Lumber Trade Dispute”

Good morning, members of the Standing Committee on International Trade, members of Parliament, and guests. My name is Lana Payne and I am President of Unifor, Canada’s largest private sector union, with more than 320,000 members across the country, working in every major sector of the Canadian economy.

Unifor members across the country have closely followed the 2024 United States election. Canada and the United States are economically interdependent. As a result, any change in U.S. policy and the U.S. economy is consequential to Canadian jobs, communities, economic sectors and trade.