Canadian Labour Reporter

TPP was heading," said Jim Stan- ford, Unifor's chief economist. Of particular concern for the union is the elimination of the 6.1 per cent tariff on vehicles over a five-year period, which will put added pressure on domestic man- ufacturers. As well, under the TPP rules, vehicles can be imported to Canada tariff-free if 45 per cent of the vehicle was sourced from a TPP country, as opposed to the current requirement of 62.5 per cent. "We're not going to start selling cars in Japan, so it will mean more imports and less production here. It also means Japanese companies have less incentive to produce anything in Canada," Stanford said. He cited as one example the uncertain future of Toyota's man- ufacturing plant in Cambridge, Ont., which, as it currently stands, will have no major production plans beyond 2018, after which the Corolla will be made in Mex- ico. "What is going to be produced (in Cambridge) instead, we don't know — and the TPP makes it less likely that anything will be pro- duced," he said. "Twenty-thousand is just the number of direct jobs we antici- pate at risk in the auto industry — it doesn't count the spinoff jobs in the auto communities and it doesn't count jobs at risk in other industries." Further muddling the mat- ter is that the makeup require- ments for cars could see outside nations sourcing the parts — for instance, a non-TPP country that supplies a TPP country with auto parts. "Never mind vehicle imports from Japan, we now have a situa- tion where even auto makers in North America will begin sourc- ing more and more of their parts, potentially counting for over half the value of the vehicle from out- side of the TPP," explained Stan- ford. "That will mean eventually the out migration of a significant part of our auto supply chain. It's a huge back door for free access to Canada by countries that aren't in the TPP." To buffer the potential for backlash, Ottawa has earmarked funds both for the automotive and agricultural industries. One billion dollars will be al- located over 10 years for the auto industry and a $4.3-billion sub- sidy will be provided for agricul- ture starting in 2018, as part of the Harper government's income guarantee and quota value guar- antee plans, according to the fed- eral government. Other industries will benefit from opening up access to TPP countries, the government add- ed. "Greater direct investment in the Asia-Pacific region by Cana- dian businesses will enhance their competitiveness," it said in a state- ment. "The TPP's investment rules will provide stability and encour- age Canadian businesses to invest in TPP markets, sharing their ex- pertise in the country's key sec- tors, such as asset management and oil and gas. "Canadian investors in areas such as energy, mining, manufac- turing, financial services and pro- fessional services will enjoy trans- parent and predictable access to TPP markets." Business case Most business groups have looked upon the trade agreement favourably, including the CFIB. President Dan Kelly welcomed the fact the government is mak- ing moves to buffer any potential backlash. "There were great fears going into the TPP discussions and I think coming out of it, most seem to be of the view that the govern- ment has limited the potential negative impact and provided compensation for whatever nega- tive impact is experienced by those groups," Kelly said, citing dairy and supply management employers. Once the terms of the deal are in full swing, the TPP will give Canada a slight edge over the United States because of our ex- clusive membership in the Cana- da-European Union Trade Agree- ment, he said. That could attract investors and appeal to those wishing to do busi- ness with a country that has lucra- tive trade agreements in Europe and the Pacific region, Kelly said. One industry that stands to gain from the deal is beef, with the Canadian Cattlemen's Associa- tion estimating beef exports to Ja- pan could nearly double or triple, to $300 million. "Canada's beef producers have long needed to have equal access to these important markets in or- der to compete with Australian and U.S. beef," said the associa- tion's president Dave Solverson from Calgary. "Now, through this agreement, Canada will receive the same pref- erential access to these markets as its competitors, levelling the play- ing field for Canadian beef pro- ducers once and for all." 7 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2015 CANADIAN LABOUR REPORTER NEWS < from pg. 1 Business positively views open trade: CFIB Photo: Chris Wattie (Reuters) Prime Minister Stephen Harper addresses the Trans-Pacific Partnership countries. The Harper administra- tion has urged the post-Oct. 19 government to maintain the terms of the international trade agreement. To buffer the potential for backlash, Ottawa has earmarked billions of dollars for the automotive and agricultural sectors.

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