ArcelorMittal Long Products Canada is closing its wire drawing mill in Hamilton, putting 153 employees out of work.

The company said Wednesday all of the work will now be done at its Montreal location.

Company chief executive Stéphane Brochu said the change is necessary to sustain its wire drawing business.

“It will allow us to improve our operational efficiency and secure our long-term competitiveness in the demanding wire drawing market,” Brochu said in a press release.

Mike Hnatjuk, president of United Steelworkers Local 5328, which represents workers at the mill, said the U.S. tariffs were “a nail in the coffin” for the mill that was already facing challenges.

U.S. President Donald Trump recently raised steel tariffs on Canada to 50 per cent.

Hnatjuk, who expects to begin talks with the company regarding a closure agreement next week, said he’s been told the company plans to stop operations by the end of the month.

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“We have stuff in our collective agreement that we hope that they’re going to follow and they’re going to offer and are we most definitely going to try to get what’s best for all this,” he said.

ArcelorMittal Long Products Canada has more than 2,000 employees with operations at multiple sites in Quebec.

The company produces more than two million tonnes of steel that is used in such things as rebar for the construction industry and for leaf springs in light and heavy-duty trucks.