Mark Carney blasts U.S.-owned Stelco after Hamilton layoffs, says workers were ‘betrayed’ - Toronto Star

'We intend to use all powers that we have and pursue them to the full extent of the law,' Carney said.

Rolls of coiled coated steel are shown at Stelco Steel in Hamilton in 2018.

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered a terse rebuke Tuesday to steelmaker Stelco and its parent company for breaching “legal obligations” to maintain jobs in Canada, saying Ottawa will pursue legal action against the company if it fails to meet those obligations. 

The day after Stelco Holdings announced it would lay off up to 500 workers at its Hamilton and Lake Erie facilities, citing the import pressures of the tariff dispute and weak demand, the prime minister laid the blame squarely at the feet of the Trump administration and its corporate allies.

Yet Carney insisted Canada remains ready to negotiate “in good faith” with the U.S. president, saying Ottawa believes a “mutually advantageous trade arrangement that respects both our countries’ sovereignty” is still possible, even as evidence mounts that President Donald Trump‘s tariff sledgehammer is drawing investment south of the border.

“We were very disappointed at this decision by Stelco,” said Carney, speaking in British Columbia. “Our — my personal and our thoughts are with the workers and the families who have been betrayed by the company.” 

“There’s money on the table from the federal government, number one, and the company made representations and has legal obligations for employment,” he said.

Steelmaker will shut Hamilton cold mill and coating lines Oct. 9, with job losses spreading to Nanticoke.