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Algoma Steel says it has issued 1,000 layoff notices to workers at its Sault Ste. plant. Marie, Ontario.
“As part of the closure of its blast furnace and coke production, Algoma has made the difficult decision to issue approximately 1,000 layoff notices today, effective 16 weeks from now, on March 23, 2026,” the company said in an emailed statement.
“This transition is necessary to protect Algoma's future in the face of these extraordinary external market forces, and we will continue to advocate for a competitive and fair trading environment for Canadian steel.”
The statement went on to say that the “unprecedented tariffs imposed by the United States” have “fundamentally changed the competitive landscape.”
Some layoffs were already expected as the steel mill shuts down its blast furnace and coke production and switches to an electric arc furnace in early 2026, about a year earlier than originally planned.
Algoma Steel recently received $500 million in government loans to protect jobs in the face of US tariffs.
Mike Da Prat, president of the union that represents most of Algoma Steel's 2,800 workers, said 900 of its members received layoff notices on Monday.
But the longtime leader of the United Steelworkers Local 2251 union says he's not yet sure how “permanent” the job cuts are, as he and his team are “finding some errors in the list” and “getting phone calls” from concerned members.
Da Prat said it was clear after 2022 contract negotiations that there would be hundreds of job cuts associated with the electric arc furnace transition, but said the union and company were working on “mitigation strategies,” including a program to assist displaced workers.
“Obviously there will be a reduction in the manufacturing industry in Sault Ste. Marie. There's no doubt about it,” he said of the layoffs affecting one-third of Algoma Steel's workforce.
“I don’t know if there will be enough jobs in northern Ontario to accommodate them.”
Bill Slater, president of the office and trade union of Algoma Steel Local 2724, said he has been told 150 of his members could be laid off, but he expects those numbers to change “a little bit.”
“A lot of people were out of work on the same day,” he said of the layoffs.
Slater said that when the federal government decided to give Algoma Steel a $400 million loan, he asked that the amount be tied to employment figures, but said that was rejected.
