Trump’s Aluminum Tariffs Wipe Out Roughly a Third of Workforce at Ontario Plant

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For workers at Novelis’s Kingston, Ontario, aluminum plant, the Canada-U.S. trade fight is no longer an abstract dispute measured in tariff percentages. It has arrived on the factory floor. Novelis said on September 18 that it was eliminating 10 salaried positions and temporarily laying off about 70 hourly employees—roughly one-third of the facility’s workforce—while reducing production. The company directly blamed the cost of U.S. Section 232 duties on Canadian aluminum.

The cuts are especially significant because they are the plant’s second tariff-linked workforce reduction in little more than a year. Novelis remains open in Kingston, but at lower volumes, leaving affected families with a difficult distinction: some jobs are gone, while dozens of others depend on whether production eventually rebounds.

About 80 Workers Are Affected — But Not All Cuts Are Permanent

Novelis’s September 18 announcement affects roughly 80 employees at its Kingston operation. The company said 10 salaried positions were being eliminated, while approximately 70 hourly employees were being placed on temporary layoff. That distinction matters. The headline number represents about one-third of the plant’s workforce, but most of those affected have not necessarily lost their jobs permanently. Novelis has said it plans to work through the union to recall hourly workers if production increases.

For the people involved, however, “temporary” offers limited certainty when no recall date has been announced. The plant is continuing to operate at reduced volumes rather than shutting down. Novelis said keeping the site running preserves its ability to raise production if circumstances change. United Steelworkers Local 343 president Dan Wood described it as a sad day for both Novelis and Kingston, showing how quickly a trade dispute can become a household income problem right now.

The Kingston Plant Sits Deep Inside the North American Auto Supply Chain

The Kingston facility is not a primary aluminum smelter. It is a downstream manufacturing site that cold-rolls, finishes and anneals aluminum for higher-value applications. Novelis lists marine, transportation and industrial markets among the plant’s customers, while its latest annual filing describes Kingston’s major products as automotive sheet and specialty material. That makes the plant part of the chain that turns aluminum into material suitable for vehicles and other engineered products.

The site also has deep roots in the city. Novelis says Kingston Works has operated in the community since 1940. In a 2015 anniversary release, the company identified major customers including Ford, General Motors, BMW and Mercedes, illustrating how closely the operation has historically been tied to the North American vehicle industry. A 2026 company job posting described the Kingston site as employing about 300 people before the latest cuts and serving customers across North America as well today.

A 50% U.S. Tariff Changed the Economics of Shipping Canadian Aluminum South

The tariff pressure cited by Novelis comes from Section 232 of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act, a national-security authority used to restrict certain imports. In 2025, the Trump administration raised the additional tariff on covered steel and aluminum imports from 25% to 50%, effective June 4. Unlike general U.S. tariffs that have sometimes exempted goods meeting CUSMA rules, the Section 232 aluminum regime has applied separately to covered Canadian metal products.

Washington adjusted the system again in 2026. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said an April proclamation imposed additional duties of 10% to 50% on the full customs value of certain covered aluminum, steel and copper products and derivatives. The White House says the measures are intended to strengthen domestic metals production and address national-security concerns. For Canadian processors selling into the United States, that means a larger border cost on goods entering their biggest nearby market.

Novelis Was Already Absorbing a Large Company-Wide Tariff Hit

The Kingston layoffs are occurring against a financial burden Novelis has quantified. In May, the company reported that tariffs reduced its adjusted EBITDA by an estimated $143 million in fiscal 2026. That figure covers the company rather than the Kingston operation alone, so it should not be read as the cost of the Ontario plant’s exposure. Still, it shows tariffs had become material enough to feature in the company’s annual results.

Novelis reinforced that concern in its August quarterly filing. The company said unpredictable tariffs and trade uncertainty were creating volatility and disruption, and warned that tariffs without targeted or time-limited exemptions increase costs and can undermine aluminum demand. Those disclosures help explain why a plant can remain capable of producing material yet still cut volumes and staffing. The question is not simply whether aluminum can be made in Kingston, but whether enough can be sold competitively across the border.

Canada’s Aluminum Industry Is Exceptionally Dependent on the U.S. Market

Canada’s exposure is magnified by how concentrated its aluminum trade is. Natural Resources Canada says the United States accounted for 91% of the value of Canadian aluminum exports in 2024. In 2025, Canada exported about $13.8 billion worth of aluminum to the United States, compared with roughly $15.6 billion in total aluminum exports. The American market remained dominant even after tariffs began disrupting traditional trade flows.

That dependence reflects geography and decades of integrated manufacturing rather than a simple lack of alternatives. Canada is the world’s fourth-largest aluminum producer and its second-largest exporter, according to Natural Resources Canada. Aluminum moves through North American supply chains into vehicles, construction, packaging, defense and other manufacturing. Redirecting large volumes to Europe or Asia is possible only to a point: different customers, shipping distances, specifications and commercial relationships make diversification slower and more complicated than simply changing a destination on a spreadsheet.

This Is the Second Round of Tariff-Linked Cuts in Just Over a Year

The latest reduction was not entirely unexpected. Novelis previously cut 21 jobs at the Kingston plant on June 11, 2025, after the United States increased its aluminum tariff from 25% to 50%. The September 2026 action is a much larger second round—10 salaried jobs eliminated and about 70 hourly employees temporarily laid off—while production is being scaled down again.

That sequence matters because tariffs often affect factories gradually rather than through one dramatic closure announcement. Companies can initially absorb costs, renegotiate contracts, reduce overtime or seek new customers before making deeper staffing changes. Novelis’s own financial filings show it has been trying to manage tariff-related costs across its business, while its Kingston statement indicates reduced production is now part of the response at the Ontario site. The plant remains open, but two workforce reductions in roughly 15 difficult months show the pressure has persisted rather than quickly fading.

For Kingston, the Impact Extends Beyond One Factory Gate

Kingston is better known nationally for government, education and health care, but manufacturing remains part of its private-sector economy. Kingston Economic Development says the city’s sustainable manufacturing cluster includes more than 100 companies and over 5,000 workers across industries such as automotive, chemicals, plastics, primary metals and shipbuilding. Novelis is one of the long-standing names in that network, with roots stretching back more than eight decades.

That history helps explain the local reaction to losing roughly one-third of the plant’s workforce in a single announcement. The direct impact is obvious for affected employees, but manufacturing jobs also support contractors, suppliers and local spending. No reliable public estimate has yet quantified the broader spillover from these particular layoffs, so claims about a precise multiplier would be premature. What is clear is that Kingston officials were already treating U.S. tariffs as a local economic risk before this round of cuts.

Governments Have Built Tariff-Relief Programs, but the Layoffs Show Their Limits

Ottawa and Queen’s Park have created multiple programs aimed at helping manufacturers survive U.S. trade pressure. In June 2026, the federal government said its support included a $5 billion Strategic Response Fund and a $1 billion Business Development Bank of Canada financing program for metal manufacturers and exporters. Ottawa also extended tariff-relief measures for eligible U.S. steel and aluminum inputs and continued policies intended to encourage Canadian procurement.

Ontario has added its own financing and trade-diversification programs. In July, the province committed $302,000 to a Kingston Economic Development trade-resilience initiative designed to help Eastern Ontario companies expand sales in Canada and Europe, with the total project valued at $492,000. The province also expanded eligibility for its Protect Ontario Financing Program for businesses hit by Section 232 tariffs. Those measures may cushion the shock, but Novelis’s cuts show that support does not automatically restore lost export economics.

Washington Says the Tariffs Protect U.S. Industry — Even as U.S. Aluminum Groups Stress Integration

The Trump administration says the aluminum tariffs are intended to protect U.S. national security and encourage domestic production and investment. When the administration raised the steel and aluminum rate to 50% in 2025, the White House said it was targeting unfair trade practices, global excess capacity and dependence on imported metal. In July 2026, Trump also announced an incentive framework offering lower tariff rates to companies with approved plans to build, expand or refurbish U.S. aluminum smelters.

At the same time, the U.S.-based Aluminum Association has emphasized that the North American aluminum market is deeply integrated and that American manufacturers rely on Canadian primary aluminum. Its preferred approach for the 2026 CUSMA review focuses on harmonized external tariffs, stronger enforcement and tighter rules against unfairly traded metal from non-market economies. The contrast highlights an important policy tension between broad border measures and regional supply-chain integration today.

The Plant’s Future Now Depends on Whether Cross-Border Economics Improve

For now, Novelis has stopped short of announcing a closure. The company says Kingston will continue operating at reduced volumes, and that maintaining operations gives it the option to increase production if conditions improve. Fiona Bell, Novelis’s head of communications for North America, said the plant’s long-term future is difficult to predict. No public timeline has been given for recalling the roughly 70 hourly employees.

That leaves the next phase tied to variables well beyond Kingston: U.S. tariff policy, Canadian trade negotiations, customer demand, contract pricing and Novelis’s ability to redirect or reshape production. The company’s 2026 filings make clear that tariffs have already had a measurable financial effect across its business. For Kingston, the immediate question is simpler. The plant is still running, but at lower volume, and roughly one-third of its workforce is now living with the consequences of a trade dispute that remains unresolved today.

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