A second Quebec manufacturer has announced mass layoffs this week amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs on Canadian exports.
Montreal-based tights manufacturer Sheertex (SRTX) founder and CEO Katherine Homuth announced on LinkedIn on Wednesday that the company has placed 40 per cent of its 350 employees on temporary layoff.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, centre, greets workers as he tours Sheertex, a pantyhose manufacturing plant, with founder Katherine Homuth, on International Women’s Day in Pointe-Claire, Que., Friday March 8, 2024.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi
“This decision was not made lightly. With 85 per cent of our sales in the U.S., and tens of millions invested in our Canadian factory, the impending U.S. tariff changes and delays in closing the final portion of our fundraise have led to tremendous financial uncertainty,” Homuth wrote.
In an email sent to Global News, Homuth said the financial impact of the tariffs has already started, even before official implementation.
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She pointed to the “immediate cost increases due to supply chain shifts, the urgent need to move inventory before tariffs hit, the impact on investment and cash flow,” and lastly, how the tariff-related cost burden is “unmanageable without action.”
The Sheertex founder said the move isn’t about waiting for the implementation of the tariffs, but about responding to the real and immediate financial impacts already in motion.
“We are acting now to survive what’s coming, rather than reacting too late when fewer options remain.”
This comes on the heels of Quebec furniture manufacturer, South Shore Furniture, announcing it had laid off 115 people in the province, also due to the threat of U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods, which are now expected to come into effect in a month.
Global News has reached out to South Shore Furniture for comment.
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