Union warns that Brampton auto plant could become first to fall in trade war - BNN Bloomberg

Unifor national president Lana Payne is warning that Stellantis is “100 per cent serious” about exiting its Brampton assembly plant and she is asking Ottawa to step in and prevent its sale to Canadian armoured ⁠vehicle maker Roshel. With Stellantis and Unifor still at an impasse just days before their collective agreement expires on Sept. 20, Payne said at a press conference on Thursday that thousands of auto jobs could be permanently erased. “Stellantis is looking for an exit, and no one, no one, should be holding the door open,” Payne told reporters Thursday. “This would make Brampton the first auto plant to fall in this trade war. And when plants close, they rarely, if ever, come back.” Trade War coverage on BNNBloomberg.ca The comments come just one day after Payne penned a letter to federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly on Wednesday warning that “there is no comparable economic replacement for this work,” and that “Canada’s economy will be worse-off as a result.” Unifor National President Lana Payne speaks to media after the opening of bargaining between Unifor and Ford Motor Co., in Toronto, on Monday, June 22, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sammy Kogan Roshel had previously said that they “look forward” to bringing back over 2,000 jobs, but Payne rejected that idea saying “it’s contingent on government contracts.” “We’re talking thousands and thousands of jobs that cannot be replicated there...consider the pay, the benefits, the collective agreement, the pensions (and) all of the things that we have been negotiated over many decades at that plant. These are not things that you can recreate overnight,” she said. A letter to employees In a letter to employees Thursday, Stellantis explained that market and trade conditions had “directly impacted the original business case for Brampton.” “Over the past several months, Stellantis has evaluated a range of options to return production to Brampton, including potential new product allocations, interim production concepts, and opportunities with other companies,” the letter read. “While each option was carefully reviewed, none provided a sustainable long-term business case that would support continued operations at the facility.” The company then clarified that they are “exploring a potential sale of the facility to Roshel,” but stressed that no transaction has been completed and due diligence is ongoing. Stellantis also pointed to more than $8 billion in previous investments saying that they remain…