The Right Honourable Mark Carney, P.C., M.P.
Prime Minister of Canada
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A2
Re: Fighting Trump’s Countervailing Duties on Canadian Softwood Lumber
Dear Prime Minister,
For decades, Canadian and American workers have built an economic relationship that, while imperfect, was supposed to be based on fairness, mutual respect, and shared prosperity. But under the Trump administration, we’ve witnessed a dangerous shift toward economic bullying and hypocrisy. The latest example? Demands for unfettered access to Canadian markets while Washington slaps punitive countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber – a move that is as unjust as it is self-serving.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t about “leveling the playing field,” as the Trump administration likes to claim. This is about stacking the deck in favour of American corporate interests while undermining Canadian jobs, communities, and sovereignty. You cannot demand open doors for your goods while slamming the door shut on ours. Yet that is exactly what is happening.
Softwood lumber has been a central pillar of Canada’s economy for generations. It’s more than just a commodity – it represents the livelihoods of tens of thousands of working people across British Columbia, Quebec, Ontario, and the Atlantic provinces. Mills in small towns provide decent, unionized jobs, sustain local businesses, and support public services through the taxes they generate. When tariffs and duties are imposed on our lumber exports, the immediate victims are not faceless corporations – they are Canadian workers, their families, and entire communities.
The United States has a long history of protectionism when it comes to softwood lumber. Time and again, Washington has accused Canada of “subsidizing” our industry because provincial governments manage Crown forest lands and charge stumpage fees. But these fees are not subsidies – they are a rational, sustainable way to manage our forests for the public good. The World Trade Organization and NAFTA dispute panels have repeatedly ruled in Canada’s favour on this issue. And yet, here we are again, with the Trump administration refusing to accept those rulings, and punishing Canadian workers for decisions we have every right to make.
Meanwhile, the same administration insists that Canada open its markets entirely to American goods and services. This is hypocrisy on a grand scale. They want to ship their products into our country without tariffs, restrictions, or safeguards, while their own protectionist measures choke off our exports. This is not fair trade – it’s economic warfare. And when one side writes all the rules to benefit itself, workers on both sides of the border lose.
American workers should be just as concerned about this behaviour as we are. It’s the same corporate greed and political opportunism that pits workers against each other, drives down wages, and erodes labour rights. The companies lobbying for duties on Canadian lumber are the same ones outsourcing American jobs to low-wage countries, busting unions, and fighting against environmental protections.
In Canada, the consequences are immediate and devastating. Tariffs mean mill closures, layoffs, and economic hardship in towns where good jobs are already hard to come by. Once a mill shuts down, it often never reopens, and the skilled tradespeople who worked there are forced to uproot their lives to find work elsewhere. The ripple effect spreads to truck drivers, equipment suppliers, local restaurants, and countless other small businesses. A policy that claims to protect American jobs is, in reality, destroying Canadian ones – and weakening the social and economic ties that bind our two countries.
The Confederation of Canadian Unions (CCU) stands firmly against this kind of economic double standard. We believe in fair trade – trade that respects the rights of workers, honours environmental protections, and upholds the sovereignty of nations to manage their own resources. We will never accept a situation where Canada is treated as a convenient market for American goods while our own exports are met with tariffs, red tape, and political gamesmanship.
The federal government in Ottawa must take a firm, unapologetic stand. Too often, our leaders have responded to U.S. trade aggression with half-measures, hoping diplomacy alone will fix the problem. But history shows that when bullies face no real consequences, they keep bullying.
I am urging you, Prime Minister Carney, to be prepared to respond in kind – whether through reciprocal tariffs, targeted trade actions, or legal challenges in every international forum available. We must also strengthen our own domestic industries, ensuring they have the support, investment, and infrastructure to weather these attacks.
Canada cannot afford to be complacent. We have the right – and the responsibility – to defend our industries, our workers, and our sovereignty. The Trump administration’s demands for unfettered access to our markets while imposing countervailing duties on our exports is nothing less than economic hypocrisy. It’s time we call it what it is, and respond with the strength, unity, and determination that Canadian workers have always shown in the face of adversity.
Sincerely,
Gregory Ball
President, Confederation of Canadian Unions
president@ccu-csc.ca
ccu-csc.ca
CC: Minister for Jobs and Families Patty Hadju
Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand
