Joly claims win after Stelco calls back 175 laid-off Hamilton steelworkers

The federal government is celebrating an about-face tonight by Hamilton steelmaker Stelco. It's bringing back the 175 workers that it laid off this fall, which ignited a storm of controversy. Marina von Stackelberg is in Ottawa tonight. Marina, the government's been pushing for this for weeks. Industry Minister Mélanie Joly calls this a huge win. Things really changed from just earlier today when she was threatening legal action on Stelco's American parent company, Cleveland Cliffs. She said the federal government would sue and force it to sell its Hamilton factory if she didn't hear from Cleveland Cliffs by the end of the day. Within a few hours, the company put out a statement saying it decided there's enough demand for its steel products to restart operations and recall the 175 workers it laid off weeks ago, and it will pay their lost wages. The union calls the about-face unprecedented. It should never happen. There was work out there, there was orders. The minister and her team saw what this was. And so, Marina, this ends a weeks-long battle between the federal government and this company. Remind us how it started. Cleveland Cliffs announced in September it would lay off up to 500 employees and temporarily shut down finishing operations at its Hamilton plant. It blamed U.S. tariffs, weak demand and competition from cheap imported steel. But the federal government says laying off those workers violated a commitment the company made when Ottawa approved its purchase of Stelco two years ago. So the minister is celebrating this moment. That's great because it brings peace of mind, but not only that, it's sending a message that when you have a contract with the government, you follow it, period. Jolie says she wants to make sure the company's CEO follows through on the promise to bring back those workers and then they'll move on. She says Cleveland Cliffs was also supposed to advocate for the U.S. to lift its 50% tariffs on Canadian steel. But instead, the CEO has done the opposite, supporting the U.S. trade war and even telling CBC News last month he bought the Hamilton Stelco plant to stop it from undercutting his U.S. business. All right. Thanks, Marina. Marina von Stackelberg tonight in Ottawa.