A union leader in Ontario is being asked to resign from a national position after he shared a video on social media that has caused discord in the union and been called hurtful by a group of Jewish members.
The national executive board of the Canadian Union of Public Employees voted on Tuesday to ask Fred Hahn to resign as a general vice-president, according to CUPE’s communication director Karine Fortin.
Fortin said the decision was made in light of the social media post and due to its impact on CUPE members and the national union.
“Our board has regrettably lost confidence in Fred’s ability to represent our union. This is not a decision we take lightly,” CUPE said in a statement on Wednesday.
“The decision was communicated to him, and we are awaiting his response.”
Hahn is also president of CUPE Ontario, the union’s advocacy body in Ontario. He was re-elected to that position in May.
CBC Toronto has reached out to Hahn and CUPE Ontario for comment.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, Hahn expressed regret for reposting the video on his Facebook feed, saying he understands that it has caused pain among some who viewed it.
“I have removed it from my feed because I deeply regret any such reaction,” Hahn said in the post on Sunday.
The video, reposted to Facebook by Hahn on Aug. 11, shows an Olympic diver on a diving board. The diver, who has a Star of David tattoo on his arm, jumps off the board and somersaults in the air.
As he heads to the water, he apparently turns into a bomb. Instead of a splash, there are clouds of dust, mayhem and destruction on the ground. Bleeding children are carried away.
Decision follows complaint from Jewish union members
A group of 80 Jewish CUPE members have filed a human rights complaint against Hahn and CUPE Ontario for antisemitism, according to employment and human rights lawyer Kathryn Marshall.
As well, a CUPE local in Windsor-Essex County has considered the possibility of ending its connection with the provincial union because of his statements.
Michael Levitt, president and CEO of the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center, said in a statement on Wednesday that the video was antisemitic.
“We welcome the CUPE National Executive Board’s decision to demand Fred Hahn’s resignation, which sends a clear message that antisemitism and the toxic environment he created for Jewish CUPE members are no longer acceptable,” Levitt said.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he applauds CUPE for asking Hahn to resign from his national position.
“Now it’s time for Fred to put his members first and do the right thing by resigning from all his positions of leadership,” Ford said in the post.
CUPE has 750,000 members in Canada, including about 300,000 in Ontario.
The current Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7 when Hamas-led militants broke into Israel, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250 others, according to Israeli tallies. Of those taken, about 110 are still believed to be in Hamas-controlled Gaza, though Israeli authorities say around a third are dead. More than 100 hostages were released in exchange for 240 Palestinians who were imprisoned in Israel during a weeklong truce in November.
Israel’s military response in Gaza has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, and devastated much of the territory.