CUPE calls for Fred Hahn's resignation following social media post

FILE - Fred Hahn, President of the Ontario Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), speaks at a press conference to voice the opposition to the "back-to-work" legislation by the Ontario PC government, at Queen's Park, in Toronto, Monday, July 16, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mark Blinch

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) passed a motion requesting national vice-president Fred Hahn's resignation following a recent social media post he shared.

CUPE's National Executive Board met Tuesday and, in the motion that passed, said it has "lost confidence in the ability of Fred Hahn to represent the national union in his role as General Vice-President, and consequently calls for his resignation from that position." The union represents 750,000 members.

Earlier this month, Hahn shared a video of a diver at the Paris Olympic Games with a prominent Star of David on their arm, jumping off a diving board before turning into a bomb that falls on civilians. The narrator in the video calls the diver an "Olympic champion."

Dozens of CUPE members filed a human rights complaint against the union in November, alleging it promoted antisemitism by isolating Jewish members, and engaged in systemic discrimination.

In a Facebook post on Sunday, Hahn said he deleted the video and expressed his "deep" regret in sharing it.

"My intention in posting it was to call attention to the reality that, while the Russian Federation was barred from participating at the Paris Olympics, the state of Israel was permitted to participate – which appeared clearly to me to be a double standard," wrote Hahn, who is also the president of CUPE Ontario.

"My intent was never to associate Jewish people with the violence enacted by the state of Israel. It remains my strongly held view that it is a terrible mistake, and anti-Semitic, to conflate abhorrent actions by the state of Israel with Jewish humanity or identity."

During an unrelated news conference on Wednesday, Premier Doug Ford described Hahn's post as "bigoted" and said it has no place in Ontario.

"I'm getting messages on my phone from CUPE members saying his comments have been disgusting. In my opinion, he's a disgusting human being anyways," Ford said.

Meanwhile, Richard Marceau with the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs called the post a "divisive, ugly, vile video that goes against the values of the Olympics."

"I think it's up to CUPE to say to Fred Hahn, enough is enough. This hatred, this vileness, this toxicity is unacceptable from any member of CUPE leadership, and he should be penalized for this," Marceau said.

In a letter to all union members, national president Mark Hancock and national secretary-treasurer Candace Rennick said they are waiting to hear from Hahn and will update them as soon as they do.

With files from CTV News Toronto's Beth Macdonell