Sean Strickland: Time to Build Access to New Markets, Now

Sean Strickland, Executive Director of Canada’s Building Trades Unions issued the following statement this afternoon:

Donald Trump’s disastrous tariffs are now a reality. While Canada has not chosen these circumstances, we have a choice today in how we respond. The coming days and weeks will prove painful for Canadian workers, their families, and business across the country, and the government must respond swiftly to protect workers. Importantly, it must also start the process to charting a new course that brings Canadian products and resources to new, and more reliable markets and trading partners.

Canada’s Building Trades Unions is calling for the following immediate actions by the government:

• Responding in a measured and thoughtful way with appropriate countervailing tariffs to protect critical Canadian industries and respond to this unprecedented, unjustified attack on Canada’s economy.
• Institute immediate enhancements to Employment Insurance, re-introducing job sharing programs, and adjusting the thresholds for EI eligibility.
• Immediately begin planning for new trade infrastructure including pipelines, rail and sea transport, and other trade infrastructure investments to bring Canadian products and resources to new, more reliable markets.

The time is now to get more shovels in the ground for the new infrastructure required to ensure Canada’s economic future can never again be threatened by the United States. Canada’s skilled trades workers expect that political leaders from across the country can come together to get shovels in the ground and keep workers whole through this challenging economic transition.