Task force needed to develop worker-centered solutions to looming U.S. trade tariffs

The looming threat of U.S. tariffs is not just an economic challenge. It’s an assault on our country, provinces, and, most importantly, our workers and their families. Premier Houston’s response in the media yesterday seems to have fallen short on answers to protect jobs and our economy quickly. It’s not up to Ottawa alone. 

While our premier seems content with platitudes, we demand concrete action because our export-dependent firms need more than words; they need immediate access to provincial loan guarantees to keep operations running and workers employed. That’s why we have written to him asking that he put a working group together that can be solution-based. We need to see that kind of commitment from our government. Premier Houston’s “drill baby drill” rhetoric misses the mark entirely. We need a comprehensive strategy that invests in value-added manufacturing to keep jobs in Nova Scotia, but that will take a long time, and we need action now.

The silence on worker support is deafening. We call on the Nova Scotia government to support workers in crisis by developing sector-specific plans to diversify our economy. To create robust retraining programs for workers in vulnerable industries. We need to push the Federal government to quickly change the Employment Insurance system to extend EI benefits with more accessible qualifying rules. We must enact legislation to prevent foreclosures and repossession laws for workers affected by tariff-related job losses and establish a wage subsidy program mirroring the federal CEWS to keep workers working. Along with any income support programs that allow for supplementary earnings, we need more educational training opportunities with the expansion of work-share programs. It is time to look at early retirement options for affected workers and to future-proof our workforce.

Premier Houston must understand that safeguarding our economy is not Ottawa’s job alone. We need all levels of government working together, with labour at the table. We call for a diverse task force to develop bold, worker-centered solutions. Nova Scotia’s unions stand ready to fight for a resilient, diversified, and self-reliant economy. We will not let our members become casualties of short-sighted politics. The time for decisive action is now; our workers, communities, and future depend on it.