Donald Trump's tariffs have pitted autoworkers' unions against each other

No question that Donald Trump’s tariff war against Canada has rattled automakers and autoworkers on both sides of the border. But how did the storied United Auto Workers union end up in Trump’s corner, buying into the White House narrative that tariff times are good times for the auto industry? Why did the UAW go MAGA? Shawn Fain is the fearless but feckless president of the mighty U.S.

union that went to the wall against Trump in last year’s presidential election. Now, belatedly, he has rallied to Trump’s side in backing a 25 per cent tariff wall — puzzling his erstwhile union allies. “We applaud the Trump administration for stepping up to end the free trade disaster that has devastated working-class communities,” the UAW leader proclaimed last month in an unprecedented embrace of the president’s rhetoric.



“The Trump administration has made history with today’s actions.” What’s his angle? “Tariffs are an attempt to stop the bleeding from the hemorrhaging of jobs in America for the last 33 years,” Fain argued last week, doubling down on his support as Trump broadened his tariff war into a global crusade. The UAW leader argues that disruption in Canada and interruptions for U.

S. autoworkers — with plants already facing closures — are worth the pain if they open up new car assembly possibilities in America. But his Canadian counterparts aren’t buying what Fain is selling.

Unifor national president Lana Payne has been outspoken in condemning Trump’s tariff tactics. She chooses her words carefully in parsing Fain’s rhetoric. “You have to ask Sean what his motive is — I’m not in his head,” Payne said in an interview.

“What I can tell you is we are in disagreement and at odds on Trump’s policy on tariffs ...

this is going to be disruptive, damaging and harmful to workers in Canada and the United States.” How did the union-busting Trump drive these two unions apart? After all, during the last major round of auto industry negotiations in 2023, Fain and Payne compared notes about how they handled the big automakers on either side of the border. The two leaders remained in close contact over the years, speaking regularly about shared interests.

Two years ago, Payne spoke optimistically about their common path at a UAW bargaining convention: “We will do great things together ...

we will do good for our members,” the Canadian labour leader told her American brothers and sisters, according to a report in the Detroit Free Press. “Let the record show that our two great unions stood together, shoulder to shoulder in solidarity.” Fast forward to 2025 and the two unions couldn’t be farther apart — it’s more elbows up than shoulder to shoulder.

The two leaders haven’t talked or texted since the trade war erupted. “I haven’t spoken to him,” Payne told me. “We usually try to chat every few weeks,” but her last text message to him was in early January.

In trade terms, the key point is that Canadians buy far more American vehicles than they build: Canada sends about 1.5 million vehicles to the U.S.

, but purchases about two million new vehicles a year. Canada now represents a big market, and Canadians won’t keep buying more than they build if Americans keep squeezing them out of good jobs. “What Canada has in the auto industry is not theirs to take,” Payne says.

The challenge is not just the division of spoils — auto jobs and revenues — but also Fain’s misplaced fantasy that Unifor’s losses will be the UAW’s gains (Disclosure: Toronto Star journalists are Unifor members). Factories cannot migrate across the border overnight — it takes years to build and retool a plant, but it also requires an established network of nearby auto parts suppliers to meet the modern manufacturing imperative of just-in-time delivery. Moreover, any new factories are likely to be situated in southern states with right-to-work laws that discourage unionization, while the relentless pace of robotics and automation will inevitably reduce any new employment potential compared to older facilities.

Why then is Fain’s UAW making engineering such a fateful about-face? Former Unifor economist Jim Stanford, who has witnessed much of the political manoeuvring in the union movement, believes Fain is walking a fine line to avoid alienating members who support Trump’s plan, while the UAW also tries to avoid antagonizing the White House. Trumpism is a powerful force among many working class Americans today. “He’s facing significant internal pressure from his union membership, some of whom have swallowed the MAGA logic,” Stanford told me.

“We know that Trump has been able to mobilize support from lots of disaffected working class people ...

Brother Fain has a tough balancing act.” Stanford understands what any keen observer of the union movement can see: Labour leaders are democratically elected, which exposes them to the vicissitudes of political waves and the vagaries of economic fads. But the reality is that when supply chains are crunched, and a recession robs consumers of purchasing power, many more American autoworkers will lose their jobs than their Canadian cousins.

Ultimately, the UAW and Unifor will be in this mess together — if not now, then later. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha.

Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page ..