Thousands of Brampton autoworkers have been told the Jeep Compass will not be built in the city after all, with Stellantis shifting production to a reopened plant in Illinois as part of a $13-billion U.S. manufacturing expansion.
Workers at the Brampton assembly plant, idled since 2023 for retooling, received robocalls this week informing them that the expected production work would not be returning to the facility. Roughly 3,000 employees had been awaiting recall.
The announcement caught both workers and local officials by surprise, according to Vito Beato, president of Unifor Local 1285, which represents Brampton plant workers. Beato said Stellantis had previously committed to producing the Jeep Compass in Brampton.
Premier demands retaliation
Ontario Premier Doug Ford blamed U.S. President Donald Trump for the move and called for aggressive economic retaliation against the United States, describing the American leader as “a real piece of work.”
I’m sick and tired of rolling over. We need to fight back.
Ford said Canada should implement counter-tariffs if Prime Minister Mark Carney cannot secure a favourable trade agreement with the Trump administration. He is scheduled to meet with Carney this week, with the Stellantis decision expected to dominate talks on a co-ordinated response.
Ottawa threatens legal action
Federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly called the production shift “unacceptable” and warned that Stellantis had made binding commitments to Canadian production in exchange for substantial financial support.
Anything short of fulfilling that commitment will be considered as default under our agreements.
Joly made the statement in a letter to the company’s chief executive. The federal government is threatening legal action against the automaker.
Carney called the Stellantis move “a direct consequence of tariffs” and said his government would work with the automaker to create new opportunities in the Brampton area. He noted Canada’s automotive industry employs 125,000 people directly and nearly 500,000 in related industries, making it the country’s second-largest export sector.
Mayor warns of wider fallout
Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that “Stellantis is bowing to the Trump administration with this pledge of massive investments in the U.S.”
He warned of broader consequences for Canadian industry.
If this bullying tactic works with Stellantis, I expect it to be replicated to every other automaker that has a presence in Canada and frankly other sectors that the U.S. has an interest in.
Stellantis said it continues to invest in Canadian operations, including adding a third shift at its Windsor, Ontario assembly plant. The company stated it remains in discussions with the Canadian government about the future of the Brampton facility, though the Jeep Compass production has definitively shifted to the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois, where it is expected to create thousands of new American jobs.
The decision comes during delicate Canada-U.S. trade negotiations. Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s minister responsible for U.S. trade, is in Washington for talks aimed at reducing tariffs on certain sectors. Carney left Washington last week without securing a trade agreement.
