Jerry Dias, the ousted leader of the country’s largest trade union, called his aide, Chris MacDonald, to his office at Unifor headquarters in Toronto on Jan. 20. In Mr. Diaz’s office, according to a source familiar with the contents of the investigator’s report on the incident, there were three bottles of men’s cologne and a bag containing $ 25,000 in cash. Two of the bottles were personalized with the initials of two of Mr Diaz’s closest colleagues, McDonald’s and Scott Doherty. Mr Diaz told Mr MacDonald that one of the bottles was for him. Then, the source said, Mr. Dias gave Mr. McDonald the bag of cash, telling him that it was his own to keep. Mr MacDonald tried to resist the offer, telling Mr Dias he could not get the money. Mr. Zeus replied that he certainly could. The report, commissioned by Unifor as part of an investigation into alleged Dias’s breach of the union code of conduct, was presented to about two dozen senior union officials and members at a March 21 meeting. The source, who was present at the meeting and read the full report, shared details with Globe and Mail. The Globe did not identify the source because they were not authorized to speak publicly about internal trade union affairs. The source said that before the meeting, union leaders told those in attendance that they were not allowed to carry recorders, including cell phones. Some in the meeting kept handwritten notes. Mr Dias went on medical leave from Unifor on 6 February. On March 11, he announced his immediate retirement from the presidency of the association, citing health issues. Unifor announced on March 14 that it had received a complaint about Mr. Dias on January 26 and immediately launched an independent investigation. In a statement, it said it had given the researcher “full authority to conduct a thorough investigation”. The union later said the complaint came from Mr MacDonald – six days after Mr Diaz’s alleged bid for cash and cologne. On Wednesday, the union announced that Mr. Dias had violated his constitution by accepting a $ 50,000 payment in exchange for promoting a COVID-19 test kit supplier to Unifor’s employers. Several employers, according to the union, have purchased these test kits. In a statement to The Globe, Unifor said it would not release additional information about the report prior to a hearing on the alleged breach. The hearing could take place as early as April, the union said. Mr. Diaz is arguably the most prominent labor leader in Canada and has long been an advocate for workers’ rights, especially car workers. Known as a ruthless man, he played a key role in overturning General Motors’ decision to close a production plant in Oshawa, OD, and was appointed by Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford last year as head of a trade-related task force. Mr Dias, Mr MacDonald and Mr Doherty did not respond to requests for comment on Friday. On Wednesday, Mr Zeus issued a public statement saying he had entered a rehabilitation center for substance abuse issues – including excessive alcohol and painkillers to treat a sciatic nerve problem – which he said had been affected by a crisis in recent months. The union’s complaints against Mr Dias are based on information contained in the report, which is about 30 pages long and was prepared by a third labor law firm, according to a source who attended the meeting. According to the source, the publication claimed that Mr. McDonald finally accepted the bag of cash from Mr. Dias because he was afraid work-related consequences because his boss disobeyed. Mr Diaz and Mr MacDonald had lunch together the same day, the source said. Later in the day, Mr. MacDonald contacted the association’s regional director for Ontario, Noreen Rizvi, to tell her about his interaction with Mr. Dias. The source said that the report states that, in the following days, Mr. Doherty called and visited Mr. McDonald several times for the interaction with Mr. Dias. Mr. Doherty was in line for Mr. Diaz’s work. Prior to announcing his resignation in March, Dias had said he would retire in August ahead of the Unifor constituent assembly in Toronto, where the union was planning to elect a new leader. Mr Doherty, who has served as Mr Diaz’s aide since 2015, was planning to run for office. Association officials backed his candidacy in February. The source said that Lana Payne, the national secretary-treasurer of Unifor, asked the foreign investigator to speak with four Unifor employees: Ms. Rizvi, Mr. Doherty, Mr. Dias and Mr. McDonald. Ms Rizvi, Mr Doherty and Mr MacDonald all took part in the survey. Mr. Dias, according to the union, was invited to participate in the investigation but did not do so. Mr Diaz said in a recent public statement that he had received advice from a doctor not to attend due to his health condition. The source said that the report excluded the name of the supplier of COVID-19 test kits. When some of those present at the meeting asked for the name of the supplier, they were told that there would be legal complications if the identity of the supplier was made public. The report also contained an anecdote about Mr Diaz asking Mr MacDonald and Mr Doherty if they were interested in buying his boat, according to the source, to which Mr MacDonald replied that he was not interested. Property records show that Mr. Dias currently owns three properties – two in Ontario and one in Florida. He bought a house in Milton, Ont. – a suburb of Toronto – in February 2018, for $ 1.13 million. He also owns a condominium in downtown Toronto, near Lake Ontario, which he bought on September 1, 2021, for $ 1.2 million. The property record for the apartment shows that no mortgage was obtained for the purchase, but Mr. Dias’s lawyer, Tom Curry, said he was supported by a credit line and that Mr. Dias was receiving rental income from the unit. Property records show Mr. Doherty and Mr. Dias owning apartments in the same retirement community in Fort Myers, Florida. Mr. Dias, now 64, was elected to the first of three consecutive terms as national president of Unifor in 2013. The union represents 315,000 employees in many sectors, including many employees at The Globe and Mail and the Toronto Star.
