Trump tariff-related layoffs hit Eastern Ontario steel mill

The town of l’Orignal, about 90 kilometres east of Ottawa, has become an early victim of tariff pressures launched by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The United Steelworkers union said more than 30 workers had received permanent layoff notices at the Ivaco Rolling Mills plant in L’Orignal.

It’s the first of more than 100 workers facing either temporary or permanent layoffs as the company deals with “challenging market conditions” that have followed confusing tariff announcements from the U.S.

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The steel plant’s parent company, Canada Metal Processing Group (MPG Canada), issued a news release Feb. 24 about the decision to reduce its workforce, before the current tariffs went into effect.

The Steelworkers were among the first groups to congratulate Mark Carney, who officially became prime minister on Friday morning.

“Workers across the country are looking to this newly appointed government to stand up for them, defend their jobs and take real action to strengthen our economy,” union president Marty Warren said in a statement.

“The latest U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum are just one piece of a broader crisis, with unfair trade practices and economic uncertainty putting our jobs and the industries that depend on them at risk,” Warren said.

Francois-Philippe Champagne, named as the new finance minister Friday, said earlier this week that as industry minister he has directed the department to prioritize investments in projects that primarily use Canadian steel and aluminum as part of the federal reaction to the Trump administration’s “unfair and unjustified” trade war.

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