Stellantis, Unifor enter contract talks in final round of auto sector negotiations

The union representing nearly 19,000 Canadian auto workers is set to open contract talks with Stellantis STLA-N today, marking the final round of its bargaining with the Detroit Three.

Unifor has already ratified new collective agreements with Ford Motor Co. F-N and General Motors GM-N this summer with current deals set to expire Sept. 20.

Unifor typically uses pattern bargaining for its auto sector negotiations, setting terms it hopes to replicate with other companies.

Last month, the union said it received notice that Stellantis was considering the closure and sale of its Brampton, Ont., assembly plant, which has been idled since 2023. The Brampton plant had been slated to be retooled for Jeep production before the company paused the plan in early 2025, and later announced it was moving production of the Jeep Compass to the United States.

Opinion: Canada’s auto sector is marked for death. What now?

The talks come against the backdrop of U.S. tariffs battering local automakers, as a 25-per-cent levy on all cars and trucks not built in the U.S. remains in place, excluding those that comply with the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement.

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened last week on social media to hike tariffs on all vehicles, auto parts and steel from Canada to 50 per cent beginning Jan. 1.