Jolie says Canada will begin dispute resolution process over Stellantis jobs lost to US

Canada is launching a dispute resolution process against Stellantis after the automaker said last month it was moving jobs to the United States.

Industry Minister Mélanie Joly told a parliamentary committee on Monday that Ottawa wants to recoup some of the billions of dollars owed to Stellantis.

Jolie said Stellantis’s moving Jeep Compass production from Brampton, Ontario, to Illinois is a breach of contract.

“Today, before the close of business, the government will take the next steps under the contract to recover Canadian taxpayers’ money,” Joly said.

“This means we will initiate a 30-day period of formal dispute resolution process to bring production back to the Brampton facility. This is the beginning of the dispute resolution process.”

In September, the company said it was canceling plans to build the new Jeep Compass in Brampton, instead moving production to Belvidere, Illinois.

The Canadian government, along with the province, have pledged billions of dollars in subsidies to automakers, including a joint commitment of $15 billion for a NextStar electric vehicle battery plant in Windsor.