The fight over Canadian steelworker jobs

Detailed summary

Stelco's US owner blames Trump's tariffs for layoffs, but its support for those same tariffs has raised questions.

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada – Chelsey Masteij had heard layoffs might be coming at Stelco, so she decided to use up some of her vacation days. She was making the most of the time off with her new dog when she got a call telling her not to come back to work.

The 34-year-old had spent years trying to break into the male-dominated steel industry before finally landing a job at the company’s Hamilton plant about three years ago.

She started as a general labourer in the cold-rolling department, later training to operate cranes and taking on shifts in the coke ovens.

The work was gruelling and physically demanding, but Masteij grew to love the routine and the close-knit community of coworkers she came to consider family. When she shared photos of herself with Al Jazeera, all in protective gear at the plant, she joked that she hardly had any pictures outside of work.

Masteij thought she might stay at Stelco until retirement. Instead, she was laid off on October 9.

“I was in a complete mess,” she told Al Jazeera, her voice cracking as she recalled the experience. “I was kind of depressed.”

Now, instead of working 12-hour shifts, Masteij spends much of her time at home, cutting back on expenses while she collects employment insurance.

Masteij is among hundreds of Canadian steelworkers facing layoffs after Stelco’s American owner, Cleveland-Cliffs, announced in late September that it would temporarily shut down parts of its operations in Hamilton and Nanticoke, Ontario.

Stelco blames the move on United States President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which it says have made it harder to sell Canadian steel to US customers, and on competition from cheaper foreign steel entering Canada.

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