Unifor: Stellantis may have sold Brampton assembly plant

Marcus Bennett

More than 2,000 Stellantis workers lost their jobs when the automaker halted assembly operations at its Brampton assembly plant in southern Ontario in 2023, according to Unifor.

Unifor, the union representing Stellantis autoworkers, now says it believes the automaker has sold the idled plant. That conclusion rests on Stellantis's refusal to confirm or deny reports, not on a disclosed closing agreement.

The documented transaction step came in September, when Stellantis signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU), a preliminary statement of intent, with Roshel for a potential sale. Roshel is a Brampton-based manufacturer of armoured vehicles and the prospective purchaser named in that agreement.

What has been confirmed?

Stellantis and Roshel spokespeople said in separate statements that they had “nothing to announce.” Neither company has confirmed that ownership passed, disclosed a sale price or released a closing schedule.

Unifor met with Stellantis on Nov. 6 and asked whether reports of a completed sale were accurate. The automaker would not confirm or deny a finalized transaction.

Unifor said it was “interpreting this refusal as confirmation that the Brampton assembly plant has been sold.” That is the strongest evidence cited by the union, but it remains an interpretation of silence.

The distinction matters for the plant, its former workforce and any supplier exposed to an ownership change. The MOU confirms that a potential sale was under consideration; it does not establish that the transfer closed or that Roshel will operate the site.

What does this change for workers?

For now, the reported sale changes the parties involved in bargaining without settling the plant's operating future. Stellantis remains the OEM associated with the property, while Roshel has not been confirmed as owner or production operator.

A completed transaction could shift responsibility for site decisions to a new company. Yet neither Stellantis nor Roshel has announced armoured-vehicle production, a capacity target, an operating date or employment commitments for the former assembly workforce.

Those omissions leave workers without a disclosed basis for judging whether the sale protects jobs, creates different roles or simply removes an idled Stellantis facility from the company's portfolio.

The union's demands remain unresolved. In October 2026, Brampton workers voted to give Unifor a strike mandate, which authorizes the union to call a strike but does not itself mean industrial action has begun.

Unifor's bargaining committee and Stellantis were at an impasse over several issues, including job security and the future of the Brampton plant. A sale would add uncertainty over who controls those negotiations, depending on when any transfer takes effect and which party assumes existing obligations.

What should buyers and suppliers watch?

The first milestone is a definitive statement from Stellantis or Roshel on whether the sale has closed. A closing date and transfer terms would establish whether the September MOU has become more than a preliminary step.

Buyers and suppliers also need a production and capacity plan before they can assess the site's industrial role. Any announcement should specify whether Roshel intends to build armoured vehicles there, how much capacity it plans and when operations could start.

No such timetable appears in the available information. The plant has remained idle since the 2023 halt, when more than 2,000 workers were laid off.

Labor negotiations provide the nearer-term test. Watch for a settlement, a strike decision under the mandate, or an extension of talks that clarifies job security and the plant's future.

Until those documents and decisions emerge, the sale remains unconfirmed beyond the September MOU, while Unifor treats Stellantis's refusal to answer as evidence that it has already happened. The next checkpoints are a definitive sale confirmation, a disclosed capacity and operating plan, and a bargaining settlement or strike decision.