(WASHINGTON) – The International Brotherhood of Teamsters stand in solidarity with our Canadian brothers and sisters in calling for an end to the personal attacks on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and a permanent exemption of tariffs on Canadian aluminum and steel.

The Teamsters believe that the ongoing negotiations to replace NAFTA provide an opportunity to raise the living standards and improve the lives of workers throughout North America. Implementing tariffs at this critical point in negotiations will only serve to derail that process and to subsequently harm workers – including working families in the United States. Negotiations should never be personal.

The U.S. had an $8.7 billion trade surplus with Canada in 2017 – including a $518 million surplus in the dairy industry. Using the Canadian agricultural supply management scheme as justification for implementing the aluminum and steel tariffs is simply misguided and potentially harmful to steelworkers and dairy workers in both countries.

The implementation of these tariffs and the inevitable retaliatory tariffs by Canada will immediately harm workers in both nations.

Canada is our nation’s oldest ally and we must treat them as such. Now is the time to reverse course, go back to the negotiating table and treat our neighbors with the respect they have earned. Our Canadian brothers and sisters deserve nothing less.

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Visit www.teamster.org for more information. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and “like” us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/teamsters.

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