Business & Finance

Stelco to Recall 175 Workers and Offer Back Pay After Government Pressure

By Tamara Khandaker

Canadian steelmaker Stelco announced it will recall all 175 workers laid off at its Hamilton plant and pay them retroactively. The decision follows a week‑long standoff between the workers, the Canadian government and Stelco’s U.S. owner, Cleveland‑Cliffs. The recall will take place on December 1 after Stelco said it had secured enough customer agreements to restart finishing operations. Workers will receive back pay for the wages they would have earned while laid off.

United Steelworkers Local 1005 president Ron Wells welcomed the announcement, calling the layoffs “illegal” and “immoral.” He credited pressure from workers, the union and the government for the outcome. Industry Minister Melanie Joly, who had threatened a court order to force Cleveland‑Cliffs to sell Stelco, said the result sent a message that Canada is a country of the rule of law.

Cleveland‑Cliffs, which acquired Stelco in 2024, had announced in late September that up to 500 workers would be laid off at Stelco’s Hamilton and Nanticoke plants, citing weak demand and difficult market conditions for cold‑rolled and coated steel. The company blamed U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian steel and competition from cheaper foreign steel. Ottawa said the layoffs violated binding commitments made at the time of the acquisition, including maintaining the same number of Canadian unionised employees through 2029. The government and the union also argued that Cleveland‑Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves violated a commitment to advocate for policies benefiting the steel industry in both Canada and the U.S. after publicly supporting Trump’s tariffs.

Cleveland‑Cliffs said its customers had committed to supporting operations in Hamilton despite the lack of response from the federal government to address shortfalls in the tariff response program. The company did not provide details on the agreements or explain what had changed to make restarting operations viable, and it did not respond to a request for comment.