A major electric vehicle (EV) battery plant in Windsor, Ontario, has become the focus of heated debate after union leaders and construction officials raised concerns about the use of foreign workers.
The project, called NextStar Energy, is a joint venture between Stellantis and LG Energy Solution of South Korea. It has received up to $15 billion in government incentives and an additional $1 billion in private investments. While the plant promises to create thousands of Canadian jobs, union leaders say foreign workers are being seen doing tasks that could easily be handled by local tradespeople.
This dispute has drawn frustration from workers, unions, and contractors who argue taxpayer money should primarily support Canadian labor.
Local union leaders say they’ve repeatedly spotted foreign workers, mostly from South Korea, doing tasks such as:
Driving forklifts
Moving materials
Electrical installation
Cutting and welding pipe
Jason Roe, business manager for Local 700 of the Ironworkers union, said it’s especially frustrating because thousands of Canadian tradespeople are available and ready to work. “It’s very frustrating knowing that these are taxpayer dollars funding the project, and it’s not going to Canadian workers and Canadian contractors,” Roe said.
Roe added that despite meeting with government officials many times, the problem has not been resolved.
NextStar Energy has strongly pushed back against the criticism. The company said:
It has already hired nearly 1,000 full-time Canadian staff.
More than 9,000 Canadian tradespeople have worked on the project so far.
The foreign workers are only temporary and are needed to install proprietary equipment and meet warranty requirements.
These workers are not counted among the 2,500 permanent Canadian jobs the plant will support once fully operational.
In a statement, NextStar explained that specialized global staff are crucial for the installation and testing of advanced technology. The company insists the foreign workers are transferring knowledge to Canadians so the plant can compete globally.
The Ontario government has said it is the federal government’s responsibility to screen and admit foreign workers. Ontario’s Ministry of Labour added that its role is to ensure all workers in the province, Canadian or foreign, are protected by the same workplace rights.
The federal government has not provided a detailed response to the recent complaints.
It’s not just unions raising concerns. Contractors working on the project have also voiced frustration.
Eric Farron, vice-president of Sylvan Canada, said he received reports of foreign workers doing non-specialized tasks like moving crates and operating forklifts. “I understand the need for specialized technicians to work on certain equipment, but I think that definition has been overstated,” Farron said. “More Canadians could have contributed.”
Sylvan Canada itself is in a $45-million legal dispute with NextStar over its removal from the project and alleged non-payment.
Farron said he has reached out to both Ontario Premier Doug Ford and federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, but has yet to receive meaningful replies.
This is not the first time the Windsor EV project has faced scrutiny. In 2023, NextStar revealed it would bring up to 900 foreign workers to help build the plant.
At the time, government officials defended the move by saying those workers were only for highly specialized roles. However, local leaders say they continue to see evidence that foreign staff are doing ordinary tasks, not just advanced technical work.
NextStar and government officials have repeatedly described the foreign workers as “knowledge transfer” staff — experts meant to train Canadians.
But union leaders argue that doesn’t explain why they are seen doing general construction work.
Jack Mesley, president of the Ontario Erectors Association, pointed out: “There’s no knowledge transfer in running a forklift or busting open a wooden crate. These are jobs Canadians are fully capable of doing.”
The situation in Windsor has drawn comparisons to a similar project in Georgia, USA. Recently, American authorities raided an LG battery plant site and detained hundreds of South Korean workers over visa issues.
Contractors in Ontario say this suggests a “pattern of behavior” across multiple projects and believe it deserves closer attention from Canadian officials.
One of the most painful points for union leaders is that many Canadian tradespeople remain unemployed while foreign workers are active at the site.
Roe, who represents over 1,000 ironworkers in southwestern Ontario, said: “It’s frustrating when I’ve got members at home on unemployment insurance, while foreign workers are doing the same jobs in their town.”
The Windsor battery plant is one of the largest industrial projects in Canada’s history, backed by billions of taxpayer dollars. Because of this, unions argue that the government has a responsibility to ensure Canadians are prioritized for jobs.
They stress that even if the number of foreign workers is relatively small, the principle matters: public investments should benefit Canadian workers first.
The Windsor EV battery plant is nearly complete and will soon begin production. Once operational, it is expected to create thousands of permanent Canadian jobs.
Still, questions remain about:
The true number of foreign workers used during construction.
Whether they performed only specialized tasks or also basic work.
How governments will respond to ongoing complaints.
For now, unions and contractors say they will continue pressing for accountability.
The Windsor EV battery plant represents a huge step in Canada’s transition to green energy and electric vehicles. But the controversy around foreign workers has overshadowed its progress.
With billions in public funding on the line, local unions and contractors are demanding that Canadian workers get their fair share of opportunities. Whether the government and NextStar take stronger action to address these concerns will shape public trust in similar projects across the country.
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