NextStar Energy has confirmed the number of foreign workers coming to Windsor to help get its new electric vehicle battery plant up to full operation
On Thursday, a statement from NextStar Energy in response to questions from CTV News indicated approximately 1,600 technicians will “assemble, install and test” the specialized equipment required to build the batteries; and up to 900 of those technicians are predominantly from South Korea
“They have specific knowledge of the equipment, having been part of the team to build it and disassemble it for shipping, and will therefore see the installation through,” reads the release
According to NextStar Energy, the work is expected to last between three months to 18 months — upon which time those specialists are expected to return home
The company stressed the positions “are not permanent full-time jobs”
The company also reiterated its commitment to create 2,500 full-time positions at the new NextStar Energy plant for Canadians
Concern over the number of foreign workers hired to work at the facility arose following an Ontario Ministry of Labour inspection indicated 11 South Korean professionals could not continue their work because it fell outside provincial laws
“As these individuals may not have the necessary skilled trades credentials to do the work, we have relayed our concerns to the company and stressed their obligations under the Building Opportunities in the Skilled Trades Act,” said David Piccini, the provincial labour minister, in a statement on Nov. 17
A Nov. 16 post on X, formerly known as Twitter, by the Windsor Police Service following a meeting with Korean ambassador Lim Woong Soon also raised questions when it referenced an expectation of “approximately 1,600 South Koreans” would be coming to “work and live” in the region as of 2024
The figure became a lightning rod for controversy among politicians in Toronto and Ottawa in the days and weeks to follow
Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called for a full inquiry into the issue while Ontario’s ministers of labour and economic development, Piccini and Vic Fedeli respectively, wrote a letter to the federal government calling for the number of foreign workers in Ontario currently at the Windsor construction site and how many would be arriving under federal programs be disclosed
Earlier this week, federal Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said he expected NextStar Energy to bring “very few” foreign workers to help transfer battery manufacturing technology as Canada establishes a new industry
The plant will be Canada’s first large-scale electric vehicle battery manufacturing plant and is expected to receive $15 billion in public subsidies
With files from CTV’s Siobhan Morris, The Canadian Press
