Windsor's Dave Cassidy to announce bid to become Unifor's next national president Tuesday

Windsor's Dave Cassidy will be announcing his bid to become the next national president of Unifor on Tuesday.

Cassidy is president of Unifor Local 444. On Monday, the local stated in a media release that Cassidy willannounce his run for the national president seat at a news conference on Tuesday morning.

Current national president Jerry Dias is retiring in August, the release states. Dias took a leave of absence earlier this month due to medical issues.

Dias was first elected national president in 2013. He was the first president of Unifor, which was formed after the Canadian Auto Workers Union merged with the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada.

Dias was re-elected in 2016 and 2019, and had previously announced he would not be seeking re-election after his current term.

Unifor's2022 Constitutional Convention is scheduled to take place in Toronto from Aug. 8-12.