Carney says Cleveland-Cliffs must honour Stelco commitments amid layoff dispute

Prime Minister Mark Carney said it would be a mistake for Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. to fail to honour the commitments it made when it bought Stelco.

At a news conference in Montreal, he declined to comment Thursday on the possibility of forcing the U.S. steelmaker to sell Stelco, saying a legal process is underway.

Carney’s comments came as Industry Minister Mélanie Joly stepped up pressure on Stelco to recall laid-off workers.

In a new letter to the steelmaker, Joly rejected its latest compliance report as “far from satisfactory.” 

“It does not alter my belief that Stelco and Cleveland-Cliffs are not in compliance with their undertakings under the Investment Canada Act,” Joly said in the letter. 

“Assertions of compliance are not a substitute for the information and evidence necessary to establish compliance.”

Joly also demanded the immediate recall of laid-off workers before she will sit down with Lourenco Goncalves, chief executive of Cleveland-Cliffs.

“He’s been wanting a meeting,” Joly told reporters. “My message to him is first bring back the jobs and then we’ll meet. I want a plan, I want a timeline, and I’m serious about it.”

The Ohio-based steelmaker acquired Stelco in 2024, agreeing to a number of legally binding commitments including to maintain employment levels for unionized workers and most salaried employees for five years.

Stelco announced plans on Sept. 28 to lay off up to 500 workers at its Hamilton and Nanticoke, Ont., steel mills, citing U.S. tariffs, weak demand for Canadian steel and competition from imported steel products.

However, Cleveland-Cliffs and the union have confirmed only 175 workers have been laid off so far, all in Hamilton.

The layoffs have fuelled an escalating dispute between Joly and Goncalves, with the minister accusing Cleveland-Cliffs of failing to honour its commitments to Canada and the CEO blaming “an avalanche” of steel imports for the temporary job losses. 

Tensions intensified after Goncalves told CBC News that the company bought Stelco in part to prevent Canadian steel from flooding the U.S. market.

However, Goncalves said Wednesday he hopes to recall all 175 workers before Dec. 25 if a plan to boost sales of Canadian-made steel to domestic customers succeeds.

“It will depend on Canadian customers buying Canadian steel, made by Stelco,” he said. “If our plan works, my intention is to call back all the 175 workers before Christmas.”

United Steelworkers national director Marty Warren accused Cleveland-Cliffs of using Stelco workers as bargaining chips in a broader trade war, rejecting the company’s argument that market conditions justify the layoffs.

“I would say the Cleveland-Cliffs owner is using our plant, our members, as a pawn in the bigger trade deal,” he told reporters Thursday. 

Warren challenged Goncalves’ claims about offshore steel dumping in Canada, pointing out that the United States accounts for the largest share of imported steel competing with Stelco’s Hamilton operations.

As to whether the union would support forcing Cleveland-Cliffs to sell Stelco, Warren said “nothing is off the table.” 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 29, 2026.

– With files from Craig Lord