NDP Leader Avi Lewis calls on PM Carney to nationalize Stelco to save jobs

Canada’s New Democratic Party has called on Prime Minister Mark Carney to nationalize Stelco as a means to protect jobs and industry.

The push comes after Stelco announced it would be cutting jobs for as many as 500 employees at both its Hamilton site and Lake Erie Works.

In a statement sent to CHCH News, NDP Leader Avi Lewis said, “Stelco’s American owners have broken legally-binding commitments that they agreed to when they purchased the company in 2024, including maintaining at least the same number of unionized workers and most non-unionized employees.”

Last week, Industry Minister Mélanie Joly told Cleveland-Cliffs, Stelco’s parent company, that they have to share a plan to save the 500 jobs potentially impacted by the layoffs or face potential legal action.

Carney echoed this sentiment, saying Ottawa will use all the powers they have to fight against the move by Cleveland-Cliffs.

In the emailed statement, Lewis says it’s a positive sign the Canadian government is preparing to take legal action, but added that a court process would take years to resolve.

Because of the lengthy process legal action might bring on, he says the government needs to take immediate action and nationalize the plant to save jobs and protect the Canadian steel industry.

Lewis says that the CEO of Cleveland-Cliffs is a supporter of Trump’s tariffs, “which are designed to deindustrialize our economy and destroy our manufacturing base.”

Carney recently told the media that the job cuts at Stelco are a result of Trump’s tariffs on Canada that have targeted key industries across the country.

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