On what U.S. President Donald Trump has referred to as ‘Liberation Day’,’ worldwide tariffs have been enacted by Canada’s southern neighbours.
While there is still a fog of uncertainty clouding the view, Lethbridge’s automotive industry leaders are driving forward in the face of adversity.
The Lethbridge Auto Dealers Association (LADA) has donated $113,600 to Lethbridge Polytechnic to ensure support for up-and-coming mechanics.
The Lethbridge Polytechnic Board of Governors Matching Endowment initiative will add $100,000, brining the total to $213,600. The money will be used for student awards and new equipment.
“It also allows us to purchase new, emerging technology so (students) have the latest and greatest technology to repair and diagnose vehicles,” said Justin Romeril, chair for the Crooks School of Transportation at Lethbridge Polytechnic.
He says the tariffs are no match for the strength of the automotive industry in Canada.
“As far as the transportation trades, we have a huge influx of need in the industry, so we absolutely are unaffected by those tariffs, or relatively unaffected.”
For Jordan Dunlop, president of LADA, it’s a decision that was made whether or not tariffs would impact the industry.
“We’ve got a longstanding partnership with Lethbridge Polytechnic and, so, whatever happens with tariffs, we’re going to continue to support (the Polytechnic), we always have.”
LADA has been donating to the polytechnic since 1997, with more than $1.4 million raised in that time.
“We do business in this community and we live in this community, so we want people to be able to get educated in the automotive trades right here in Lethbridge,” said Dunlop.
For Romeril, the donations will allow the polytechnic to keep up with the ever-changing world that lives in the mechanics shop.
“It used to be that people just thought that we were kind of grease monkeys and we’d repair parts and file points, but those are things of the past. Just about everything is electronic and we have to be able to make sure that everything is communicating with one another,” he said.
And he believes a career in the automotive industry will be a smart choice for years to come.
“We absolutely have to maintain the things that are on the road and there’s no getting around having qualified technicians to be able to keep them going.”
LADA represents 16 automotive dealerships in and around Lethbridge and donates $10,000 annually to the polytechnic above any one-time donations such as this one.