Goodbye Prepac: “Using tariffs as an excuse to redirect all their production to the United States. It’s pure greed”
Union heads are calling for a Canada-wide boycott on Prepac products after the furniture firm opted to leave for the U.S.
Union chiefs are urging Canadians to boycott Prepac products after the ready-to-assemble furniture company opted to close its British Columbia plant and centralize manufacturing at a facility in the United States.
Over 170 jobs lost as Prepac leaves Canada
Unifor, a private-sector union that represents 320,000 workers in Canada, revealed in a statement last month that Prepac is shifting its operations from Delta, British Columbia, to North Carolina.
The move comes at a cost of more than 170 jobs in Delta, Unifor said, with the entirety of the B.C. site’s workforce set to be severed by May.
A firm founded in Vancouver in 1979, Prepac established operations in Delta in 2005, but in 2021 built a facility in Whitsett, North Carolina. That came two years after the company was bought by the private equity firm TorQuest, in a deal worth $199 million, per Business in Vancouver.
“A slap in the face for Canadian workers and Canadian consumers”
Noting that Prepac cited an “altered economic environment” as a reason for the Delta closure, Uniform has accused the company of “abandon[ing] Canadian workers” amid the country’s emerging trade war with the U.S.
American president Donald Trump, who returned to the White House in January, has imposed a 25% levy on many goods coming over the border from its North American neighbor, which in turn has retaliated with $60 billion worth of tariffs on U.S. products.
Speaking to Global News, Unifor’s western regional director, Gavin McGarrigle, said: “We’ve been in bargaining [over a collective bargaining agreement with Prepac] all of last year through many months of negotiations.
“We reached a deal in mid-December and we had no notification that they were planning to leave only 60 days later.
“The only thing that changed was the Trump administration was brought in, we saw the chaos caused by these tariff threats, and now we see this private hedge fund taking this opportunity to abandon Canadian workers, abandon the people that built up the value in this company.”
Unifor’s national president, Lana Payne, said in a statement: “Our union has been warning about lost investment and production since Trump began his economic war on Canada and Canadian workers.
“In this case, Prepac and its equity owners are using the tariffs as an excuse to redirect all their production to the US. It’s pure greed.”
McGarrigle added: “It’s a slap in the face to Canadian workers and Canadian consumers who have made this company a success since 1979. We will be calling for a boycott of Prepac products nation-wide.
“It’s another example of equity firms stripping companies for profit with no regard for jobs, community, or frankly, decency.”
“A necessary step,” Prepac boss insists
In response, Prepac CEO Nick Bozikis has insisted that Trump’s tariffs had no bearing on the company’s announcement.
In a statement given to Global News, Bozikis said: “The last several years have been challenging for North American furniture manufacturers with overall demand currently lower than when we opened the North Carolina facility in 2021.
“The closure of our Delta, B.C. facility is a necessary step that reflects the realities of Prepac today, and the prospects for the company going forward.”
Bozikis noted that North Carolina is nearer to Prepac’s most significant client base, with 70% of the company’s orders now arriving from customers on the east coast of the U.S.
“THE TRUMP EFFECT”
While Prepac claims it was not influenced by Trump’s tariffs, the U.S. administration is chalking up the company’s move as a victory for the president’s trade policies.
In a post on the social-media platform X last month, the White House said: “THE TRUMP EFFECT: Prepac, a Canadian furniture manufacturer, announced it will move production from Canada to the U.S.”
Get your game on! Whether you’re into NFL touchdowns, NBA buzzer-beaters, world-class soccer goals, or MLB home runs, our app has it all.
Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more – plus, stay updated on the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.
Complete your personal details to comment
Your opinion will be published with first and last names