Windsor auto workers apprehensive about potential 25 per cent tariffs impacting jobs

Windsor reacts to the auto tariffs put forth by U.S. President Donald Trump. CTV Windsor’s Sanjay Maru reports.

A longtime Windsor auto worker fears layoffs could come swiftly once U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposed 25 per cent tariff on foreign-made vehicles takes effect next week.

“This plant could be shut down really fast,” said Ken Rusnak.

“Things were running really smooth before the tariffs, and everything’s out of whack right now.”

Trump signed an executive order Wednesday imposing a 25 per cent tariff on all automobile imports to the U.S. starting April 2.

While vehicles built under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) may be temporarily shielded, depending on how much of the vehicle is U.S.-made, the White House said tariffs will eventually apply to all foreign-built vehicles and auto parts.

With jobs hanging in the balance, Rusnak said conversations have been swirling inside the plant about what the Canada-U.S. trade tensions could mean for their livelihoods.

“Everybody’s saving their money,” he said.

“Nobody’s spending — especially factory workers who know a layoff might be coming. Nobody’s buying big-ticket items like cars.”

Ken Eansor owns the Windsor Honda dealership and said his team is seeing more customers asking about where vehicles are made, with many showing a preference for Canadian-built models.

“We’re promoting the fact that we sell CR-Vs and Civics built in Alliston, Ontario,” he said.

“They’re built by proud Canadians for proud Canadians, and that’s the theme we’re promoting.”

According to Eansor, some customers are actively seeking out dealerships that promote local manufacturing.

“We had a couple come in the other day after they saw our flags, and said, ‘We’re buying a car here because it’s made in Canada,‘” he added.

Still, Eansor warned that the 25 per cent tariff could significantly drive-up prices.

“These parts go back and forth several times before they hit the assembly line,” Eansor said.

“All of those increases go into the price of the car. Vehicles are going to go up substantially — and unfortunately, that gets passed on to the consumer.”

John D’Agnolo, president of Unifor Local 200 and chair of Ford’s master bargaining committee, said the auto industry’s tight profit margins leave little room to absorb a 25 per cent duty on imported parts.

“I have over 1,000 parts in my engine,” he said.

“If those parts are tariffed, Ford would have to call every supplier and ask, ‘Can you survive this?’ The company would have to supplement them, and the cost would be enormous. It would destroy a company.”

He said the broader structure of the auto industry, deeply integrated across North America, makes this kind of policy especially destabilizing.

“You just can’t lift up a plant and move it across the border,” he said.

“We need to keep educating people on the impact this will have on both sides.”

As for Rusnak, he fears the signs of disruption may already be showing.

He’s particularly worried about the recent absence of Saturday shifts —typically a chance to earn overtime pay.

“There hasn’t been a Saturday in six weeks,” he said.