23 Facts About Hassan Yussuff

Hassan Yussuff was born on December 15,1957 and is a Canadian labour leader and politician.

From 2014 to 2021, Yussuff served as president of the Canadian Labour Congress, the first visible minority person to hold the role.

In 2021, Hassan Yussuff was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to serve as Canadian Senator from Ontario.

Hassan Yussuff emigrated to Canada from Guyana as a young man to work as a heavy truck mechanic.

Once he arrived in Toronto, Hassan Yussuff soon found employment on the plant floor of CanCar, a local automotive parts manufacturer.

Hassan Yussuff first became a member of the Canadian Auto Workers union while at CanCar.

Hassan Yussuff was later elected plant chairman of the General Motors Truck Centre.

Hassan Yussuff later served as a staff representative in the organizing and service departments before being appointed as Director of the CAW Human Rights Department.

Hassan Yussuff's position led to him joining the CLC's Executive Council, where he co-chaired the CLC Human Rights Committee.

In 1999, Hassan Yussuff was elected Executive Vice-President of the CLC.

In 2002, Hassan Yussuff was elevated to the position of Secretary-Treasury within the CLC, serving for twelve years.

Hassan Yussuff remained in that position until 2014, when he challenged incumbent CLC President Ken Georgetti, defeating him by 40 votes at the CLC's May 2014 convention to become CLC president.

Hassan Yussuff's presidency was characterized by a rift among the leadership of the CLC between NDP-loyalists and those who favoured widening the support to include the Liberal Party where appropriate.

Unable to reconcile his differences with the CLC on a number of issues, including on UNIFOR's decision to begin raiding other affiliates of the Congress, Dias pulled UNIFOR out of the CLC and disaffiliated, leaving Hassan Yussuff, elected from the delegates of UNIFOR, ineligible to remain in the role.

Hassan Yussuff was given a special membership by one of the affiliates to permit him to carry out the remainder of his term, and on June 18,2021, Yussuff retired from office, and was replaced by Bea Bruske.

Hassan Yussuff's presidency saw the CLC make several important inroads on important issues it had campaigned for, in some cases, for decades.

Notably, Hassan Yussuff's leadership was characterized by "Town Hall"-style campaign events, where he travelled across Canada holding events on various topic of importance, often with experts or scholars on the topic joining him on the stage.

In 2019, Hassan Yussuff voiced concern that the federal NDP was failing to resonate with both its membership and the general electorate.

Hassan Yussuff opposed the CLC's decision to affirm its relationship with the NDP at the 2021 convention, arguing the CLC should take a more pragmatic approach to party politics.

In 2021, Hassan Yussuff co-wrote an op-ed with Perrin Beatty, CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, in support of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy for the Financial Post.

On June 22,2021, Hassan Yussuff was appointed by Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to the Senate of Canada.

Hassan Yussuff is married to Jenny Ahn, who works as the Executive Director for Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations, with whom he has a daughter.

In October 2018, Hassan Yussuff received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Ryerson University.