Union, industry leaders urge government not to rush trade talks with the U.S.

OTTAWA – Union and industry leaders at a rally in Ottawa on Friday, urged the federal government not to rush to get back to the table with the U.S., arguing Canada should use the leverage it has in negotiations.

Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association, said while the auto sector is incurring “very damaging” costs due to tariffs, signing a bad deal could lead to more costs and disinvestment decisions.

Volpe said Canada should wait to get a deal that makes manufacturing in Canada sustainable, adding he’s “not worried” about how long that will take.

Asked how long the industry can last with the tariffs in place, Volpe said “just watch us.”

“I think that we should grind it out as long as we need to,” he said. “Right now, the proposal on the table is that the tariff cost is higher than the profit margin, and none of these companies are going to run a charity.”

Canada and the United States are in the midst of an escalating trade war after talks broke down earlier this month when a deal could not be reached to address trade irritants on both sides of the border.

The federal government announced plans to apply tariffs of 15 to 50 per cent hundreds of U.S. products, including steel and aluminum, some construction materials, dairy products, alcohol and beauty products. The tariffs, which are to take effect Sept. 8, are retaliation for new 50 per cent tariffs U.S. President Donald Trump slapped on Canada on Aug. 22, on an array of products including hockey sticks, honey, and some dairy items.

Trump has threatened further tariffs in January.

At a labour rally on Parliament Hill Friday, Unifor national president Lana Payne told reporters Canada must be prepared to “ride out” the Trump administration.

“When you’re up against someone like Donald Trump, concessions are not going to lead to a good deal,” she said. “We have to stand together in Canada. We have create our own leverage in this country to be able to have strength at a bargaining table.”

She said Canada’s retaliatory tariffs will give Canada leverage in any future talks.

“If we allow Donald Trump to deindustrialize Canada, we will wake up two years from now, and all of that volume, all of that production, all of that capacity will be gone,” she said. “We need an industrial plan that keeps this together for the next two years because honestly, I don’t see us getting a trade deal any time soon.”

Canadian Labour Congress president Bea Bruske said at the rally Friday that unions are united in “standing together to fight Donald Trump.”

Speaking to reporters, Bruske said the federal government’s initial supports for affected companies and workers — which include new loan programs for businesses and more flexibility to apply for employment insurance — were a good first step, but that more relief will be needed as the trade war continues. 

“We’re in a very uncertain situation. Every single day there’s new news that comes out and things change and so workers need to know that this government has their back and that has to include additional supports,” she said.

“Some things like employment insurance have not really been touched in many, many years. Those are things that government, I think, can be focused on right now.”

In negotiations, Bruske said sometimes walking away from the bargaining table is “the best thing that you can do.”

“You can’t necessarily signal that you’re going to be prepared to go back until the other side actually acknowledges that they need to come back to the table,” she said. “I think that’s the moment that we’re in right now.”

“We also can’t be rolling out a red carpet to resume talks.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 28, 2026.