'A slap in the face': Foreign workers still building NextStar battery plant in Windsor: CBTU
Canada’s Building Trades Unions is demanding the federal government intervene as it alleges local workers are being “sidelined” by foreign employees.
In a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, obtained by CTV News, CBTU members say they have had several “fruitless” meetings with NextStar Energy and LG to secure work they say their members can perform.
“Canadian workers are being sidelined without consequence,” the letter reads. “For our members in Essex-Kent, the current state of affairs is intolerable.”
CBTU is made up of 12 skilled trades unions, including painters, carpenters, plumbers, Teamsters, elevator and rail operators to name a few.
In a statement to CTV News, CBTU Executive Director Sean Strickland says they have 1,600 workers at the factory on Windsor’s east end but they also have 180 Essex-Kent millwrights and ironwokers who are currently unemployed and available to do the work.
“This has never been a case of ‘knowledge transfer’ or ‘specialized knowledge’,” the CBTU letter reads. “This is the brazen displacement of Canadian workers in favour of international workers, by major international corporations thumbing their noses at both the Government of Canada, taxpayers, and our skilled trades workers.”
NextStar Energy however says the CBTU complaint is “inaccurate”, while also admitting four percent of the people working inside the factory are non-Canadian.
“At present, there are 1,975 workers on site who are readying the plant for launch. All of those workers are Canadian except for 72”, the NextStar Energy statement reads. “These workers are hired temporarily by the suppliers to install proprietary equipment and are a requirement of warranty obligations.”
A statistic quoted by Prime Minster Trudeau during a news conference Thursday in Alliston, Ont.
The federal government is giving Honda five billion dollars in incentives to build electric vehicles and EV batteries in Ontario.
NextStar Energy also tells CTV News, the “projected” 2,500 jobs at NextStar “will be filled by Canadians”.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
$500K-worth of elvers seized at Toronto airport
Fishery and border service officers seized more than 100 kilograms of unauthorized elvers at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Wednesday.
Box tree moths have infested Ontario and experts say more are coming. Here's what to do to protect your garden
An invasive moth species is on the rise in Canada and, if you've planted a certain shrub, it could stand to ruin your garden.
Thousands are expected to rally on Washington's National Mall in support of Palestinian rights
Thousands of protesters are expected to turn out for a rally in the American capital Saturday in support of Palestinian rights and an immediate end to Israeli military operations in Gaza.
Hundreds walk backwards in downtown Montreal to symbolize the decline of LGBTQ2S+ rights
On Friday, hundreds gathered and walked backwards in the heart of Montreal to honour the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta boundary: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Banking mogul suing government after intelligence leaks leave him shut out of Canadian economy
Chinese Canadian banking mogul Shenglin Xian has launched a $300 million lawsuit against the federal government. It’s a means to find the source of intelligence leaks which Xian says has cost him his livelihood.
Jesus is their savior, Trump is their candidate. Ex-president's backers say he shares faith, values
As Donald Trump increasingly infuses his campaign with Christian trappings while coasting to a third Republican presidential nomination, his support is as strong as ever among evangelicals and other conservative Christians.
Video appears to show Sean 'Diddy' Combs beating singer Cassie in hotel hallway in 2016
Security video aired by CNN appears to show Sean 'Diddy' Combs physically assaulting singer Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016.