Industry Minister Mélanie Joly is calling on the U.S.-based owner of Stelco Inc. to provide a concrete plan and timeline to restore jobs at its Canadian steel mills before she will agree to meet with CEO Lourenco Goncalves.
Cleveland-Cliffs says it’s in full compliance with the promises it made as part of an Investment Canada Act review that allowed its purchase of Stelco in 2024.
The company also says Stelco has requested a meeting between Joly and Goncalves to talk about a path toward resuming full employment for workers who have been temporarily laid off.
Joly told reporters Tuesday that the government wants a plan to bring back laid off workers before she will sit down with the head of Cleveland-Cliffs.
She says the Ohio-based company has not respected its binding commitments, including a five-year commitment to maintain at least the same number of unionized workers and most non-unionized employees as when the deal was struck.
Joly says Ottawa could still take the company to court to enforce its commitments, seek financial penalties or require the sale of Stelco.
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Cleveland-Cliffs has rejected Ottawa’s allegations, maintaining that it has met all its commitments.
“The facts are clear,” Goncalves said in a statement. “We made serious commitments to Canada when we acquired Stelco, and we have honoured them.”
He added that Stelco is in full compliance with all undertakings and in several important areas has even gone beyond what it committed to do.
“For galvanized products, the imports of non-automotive galvanized steel that continue to flood the Canadian market remain problematic,” he said
“We want to find a solution for Hamilton and its workers as soon as possible and believe common sense trade policy will make this a reality.”
Joly has accused Cleveland-Cliffs of failing to honour six binding commitments made when it purchased the Ontario steelmaker.
The minister has said the company must address its alleged violations, prove it has not broken its commitments or explain why it has failed to meet them.
However, in a letter to Joly, the company says it’s in full compliance with each of its 34 undertakings, including its promises regarding employment levels.
The company says Stelco will update its compliance report following the Oct. 31 close of the current reporting period.
Don’t blame Stelco, they have no market as I refuse to make a trade deal with the USA and I also allow steel from China to be dumped in Canada further eroding the market for Stelco. I didn’t do my job.
Joly can hire them in the Federal Govt.
Anyone else want to see Joly bend at the waist while lowering her pantiies … and you can sniff her chocalate startfish while she crop dusts your face with her Montreal smoked meats lol
Lmfao
getting some popcorn…
The feds didn’t hold up their end of the deal, why should Stelco / Cleveland-Cliffs be forced to?
Whether written into the agreements or not, Canada would have been expected to fight to reduce or prevent the tarriffs, not intentionally sabotage the trade talks and aggravate the situation, as they did.
@ Bill – The stock market is doing much better than the citizens are. Which should be our government’s priority?
Corporations exist to benefit people not the other way around. If a government does not look after the well being of it’s citizens why does it exist?
Of course it doesn’t matter if the company can be profitable, we must protect our useless union workers🙄
I’ll translate for the low-comprehension anti-Canada frothers:
Now that the gov’t has set a deadline Stelco wants to negotiate. Joly says not until you show us the plan to end the furloughs and get back in compliance.
Gee, another consequence the LPC couldn’t see coming when they allowed this to happen. Welcome to liberal Canada!!!
To answer one of the commenters. I don’t care if the company can’t sell it’s product. This huge US based corporation signed an agreement. They can pay for the workers to sit around out of their profits. I don’t care.
I am curious as to how much rolled steel comes into the port of Vancouver, then goes east and gets sold into the states. Maybe there could be group that could look into it. We could call themselves, say…. Investigative Journalists?
Just keeping pushing away there Joly and Stelco will soon announce the closing of the plant(s). Or is this part of the Carney New Canada economic plan?
More threats from Joly that’s all she has. This situation is making Carney and this Liberal government look very stupid. If you are going to make threats you should be prepared to follow through otherwise you look weak.
Fortunately none of you make sense in your comments.
@Ben how can a company keep employees when they cannot sell their products because Carney can’t or won’t get a deal over the tariffs it makes no business sense. Company can’t sell product = company lays off workers. Next they will close the plant completely and more people will be out of a job.
We know the threats keep coming because the Liberals are worried a court case will make an a$s out of them.
Trumpmeister says go fug yourself cunada
Yeah, you said that already. You haven’t made any case for them being in violation.
You’re just a dumb emotional twit.
What part about ” stop dumping chinese steel” do liberals not understand?
When Joly finally becomes sober she might understand that businesses need to make a profit and paying employees to sit around with their finger up the Azz like most Liberal MP’s will eventually close a business down permanently.
Carney refusing to make a deal with the USA has caused these layoffs to happen. Plus, Carney is allowing cheap steel from China to be dumped in Canada further eroding the market for Stelco, Carney could also cancel the industrial carbon tax to help Stelco be more competitive
Cleveland-Cliffs made WRITTEN employment commitnents when it bought Stelco in October of 2024. The company accepted BINDING commitments under Canada’s Investment Act. This is the ONLY issue of import. If the company is in non-compliance, why are some conservatives blaming Joly and Carney?
I think Liberals suck at writing contracts and legislation.
Where is Jolys plan regarding the 100,000 jobs lost in August and September.
Melanie Joly is foolish. How can she expect to negotiate with a foreign company if she refuses to meet them. There is nothing she can do to them. Her best threat is to close down the plant that the company is planning to shut down anyway. – who is giving her direction?
Private companies don’t work on virtue signalling, platitudes, and fairy dust like the Carney Liberals.
More ground shaking threats from Ottawa. Do as we say not as we do. Build Ferries in China with Chinese steel for BC.