Unifor believes Stellantis has already sold its Brampton plant in Canada to Roshel, the armored-vehicle manufacturer that signed a memorandum of understanding with the automaker in September. The union expressed that view after a November 6 meeting in which it asked Stellantis to clarify reports about a possible sale. When contacted separately by The Canadian Press, both companies said they had no announcements to make.
Stellantis faces new pressure as Unifor claims Brampton sale may already be complete
The plant’s future is one of the reasons negotiations over a new collective agreement have remained stalled since September. The talks cover more than 9,000 Stellantis employees in Canada. According to Unifor, the automaker has tied an agreement on economic terms to a deal involving the closure of Brampton. Stellantis argues that Roshel’s arrival could bring industrial activity and jobs back to the site. The union instead wants vehicle assembly to resume and is seeking a long-term future for roughly 2,200 workers who remain on indefinite layoff.
Brampton produced the Dodge Charger, Challenger and Chrysler 300 until December 2023. Stellantis then stopped production to retool the plant for the new Jeep Compass, but suspended the work in February 2025. The following October, the company announced that the Compass for the U.S. market would move to Belvidere, Illinois, as part of a plan that also includes the Jeep Cherokee.
At a November 3 meeting, according to Unifor’s account, Stellantis said it still owned the Brampton plant and continued discussions with the federal government in Ottawa. The following day, the union requested a meeting with Stellantis and both the federal and Ontario governments to discuss the plant’s future together. No date has yet been set.
The week of November 9 will mark the fourth consecutive week of halted production at Windsor, where Stellantis builds the Dodge Charger and Chrysler minivans. When announcing the extended shutdown, the company pointed to market demand and the impact of tariffs. Unifor wants guarantees that Stellantis will preserve the third shift and fears that the Brampton decision could set a precedent for other Canadian facilities, starting with the Etobicoke casting plant.
On October 17 and 18, 97.3% of voting workers gave Unifor a strike mandate if necessary. In its November 4 update, the union said it had not yet requested a No Board report from the Ontario Ministry of Labour conciliator. Workers have therefore already approved the strike mandate, but the formal process required before a strike can begin remains open.