Ironworkers protest Amherstburg fire hall project over use of non-union, non-local labour

Ironworkers from the region are protesting the subcontractor chosen to build Amherstburg’s new south fire hall. CTV Windsor’s Chris Campbell has more.

A group of ironworkers gathered outside Amherstburg’s south fire hall construction site Tuesday morning to protest what they call ‘unsafe and unfair labour practices’ after learning a non-union, out-of-town company was hired for structural steel work.

Rally spokesperson Terry McGee is an ironworker represented by the International Association of Bridge and Iron Workers Local 700. He said the group is concerned about the use of unqualified labour and the lack of local hiring on the $11.3 million project.

“It’s unskilled, unqualified workers here, and we’re out of work and we’re local,” McGee explained.

“We have a 10 per cent unemployment rate, and we need to stand up for our work, for our apprenticeships.”

McGee told CTV News safety is a major concern on site.

“They’re using a zoom boom to put steel up, not a crane,” Terry said.

“The last thing we want to see as professional ironworkers that are ticketed, is a fatality. Half of them can’t speak English. There’s a language barrier. How do you communicate when you’re hurt? It ends up in a fatality.”

The group said they have offered to help train and certify the current crew through the union hall to ensure the job is completed safely and to standard.

McGee said the protest is also about supporting apprentices who fell behind on their training during the pandemic.

“Local apprentices are our big concern right now,” he said.

“With COVID and everything, we’re behind on training. We need these guys trained. We need our skilled force to come back from COVID.”

He added that the community response to the demonstration has been supportive.

“We’ve been getting a lot of support from the Amherstburg people of this town, and we want to thank them as well for helping us out,” he said.

Amherstburg councillor Linden Crain confirmed that the protest is related to the town’s contract with Niacon Limited, a Niagara Falls-based general contractor managing the project.

Crain said the municipality must follow provincial procurement rules and cannot legally require companies to be local or unionized.

“Just for clarification, for the public’s perspective, municipalities are not permitted by law to give preference to local contractors or require the use of unionized workers,” Crain said.

“Council awards the tender when it comes to our meeting and then Niacon handles the rest. We’re not able to give preference over whether the company is local or not.”

Crain said broader concerns about labour fairness should be directed to the province or the contractor.

“I think it’s something that needs to be addressed with the province, and it’s something that they should also be addressing with Niacon Limited,” he said.

CTV News has reached out to Niacon Limited for comment but has not received a response as of publication time.

The new south fire hall project contract was awarded in August 2024 and was originally scheduled for completion in August 2025. The town now expects construction to finish by March 2026.