This week’s announcement by Cleveland Cliffs to indefinitely idle certain Stelco operations in Hamilton is a tragedy.
asserted
announcement → idle → Hamilton
Losing 400-500 well-paid union jobs will impact thousands locally, and losing critical value-added manufacturing capacity makes Canadians collectively poorer.
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Canadians → lose → capacity
Unfortunately, members of the United Steelworkers (U.S.W) have seen this before.
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members → see → this
A pattern of broken promises
Not long ago, another American steel company, U.S. Steel, purchased Stelco, but citing economic headwinds permanently reduced capacity, laid-off thousands, declared bankruptcy and took Stelco’s most lucrative customers from the auto sector.
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company → purchase → sector
While the names have changed, the outcome is similar: the shuttering of advanced Canadian manufacturing capacity and losing hundreds of good, union jobs.
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outcome → change → jobs
What’s really behind the shutdown?
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What → ’ → shutdown
Now, Cleveland Cliffs, Stelco’s new owner, cites U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and imports as reasons for the idling.
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Cliffs → cite → idling
Ottawa’s tariff-rate quota (TRQ) program insufficiently protects domestic flat rolled producers, such as Stelco, Algoma and Dofasco, while its ‘horizontal remission program’, which exempts entire industries from paying tariffs on imported U.S. steel, has also piled import pressure on Canadian steel producers.
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which → protect → producers
Combined with the loss of the U.S. export market, the results are predictable: oversupply, depressed prices and idled capacity.
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results → combine → market
Nor was Stelco the first casualty; Algoma in Sault Ste. Marie had already closed one mill and significantly scaled back another.
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Algoma → close → another
The U.S.W has repeatedly warned about the limitations of these measures.
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U.S.W → warn → measures
We’ve called for a tighter TRQ, an end to the horizontal remission and expanded tariffs on steel derivatives.
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We → call → derivatives
Pointed questions, however, should be directed at Cleveland Cliffs.
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questions → direct → Cliffs
It’s the leading supplier of steel to the North American automotive sector.
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It → ’ → sector
The question asks itself: is Cleveland Cliffs supplying Canadian auto manufacturers with U.S.-made steel that could easily be made in Hamilton?
uncertain
that → ask → Hamilton
If so, idling capacity and laying off Canadian workers is a conscious decision that explicitly benefits U.S. plants and workers — deindustrializing Canada exactly as Trump wants.
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Trump → idle → Canada
If the answer is no, Cleveland Cliffs must still answer what commitments it is breaking under the Investment Canada Act when it purchased Stelco in 2024, and why it has refused federal assistance to maintain Canadian operations and employment levels.
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it → answer → operations
In turn, Ottawa has an obligation to ask if foreign ownership of critical manufacturing assets is in the national interest.
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ownership → have → interest
During a bitter fight against U.S. Steel in the early 2010s, U.S.W local 1005 described U.S. Steel’s actions as “nation wrecking.”
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1005 → describe → wrecking
Canadian workers watched U.S. Steel end steelmaking in Hamilton and turn Stelco into a supplier for American mills.
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Steel → watch → mills
Cleveland Cliffs’s actions are producing the same nation wrecking results.
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actions → produce → results
Canada can’t afford to lose control
The federal government faces a choice.
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government → afford → choice
“Building Canada strong” means achieving economic sovereignty, resiliency and strategic autonomy.
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Building → build → sovereignty
But a country cannot be resilient if it is dependent on imports to supply 50 per cent of domestic steel needs.
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it → supply → needs
It’s also not strategically autonomous.
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It → ’ → ?
if it lacks domestic capacity and capability to produce steel for its defence and national security requirements.
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it → lack → requirements
A country is not economically sovereign if it does not have capacity to produce beams or rails that form the backbone of infrastructure and transportation.
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that → have → infrastructure
Ottawa cannot sit by and allow Stelco’s productive assets to whither nor allow Cleveland Cliffs to renege on their commitments.
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Cliffs → sit → commitments
That would be betraying Canadians expectations that Prime Minister Carney is intent on “building Canada strong.”
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Canada → betray → expectations
He often looks towards Europe with admiration.
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He → look → admiration
In the U.K., when foreign capital was sabotaging British Steel, the government nationalized the company.
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government → sabotage → company
Recently, the U.K. nationalized Speciality Steel U.K., after concluding private sector offers would be unreliable in ensuring the long-term viability of the company.
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offers → nationalize → company
In considering its response, Ottawa should place all options on the table — including divestiture for a breach of contract as per the Investment Canada Act.
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Ottawa → consider → Act
If foreign capital is an unreliable caretaker of critical manufacturing capacity and engages in actions that are contrary to our national interest, then the federal government has an obligation to protect our economic sovereignty.
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government → engage → sovereignty
The Aporia
