© Kimberly P. Mitchell, Detroit Free Press United Auto Workers President Gary Jones speaks during a town hall to discuss pensions at the Teamsters Health and Welfare Building in Detroit on Friday, July 20, 2018.

UAW President Gary Jones is taking a leave of absence as the federal corruption probe into the union's top leadership escalates.

The paid leave is effective Sunday, a day before voting on a new contract begins among Ford's UAW employees.

A source said a message, described as shocking, was sent after 9 a.m. Saturday from the office of the president addressed to UAW staff personnel requesting a leave. It was granted by the union's International Executive Board. There are about 500 UAW staffers nationwide.

UAW Vice President Rory Gamble, who just led negotiations for the tentative agreement with Ford Motor Co., will serve as acting president, according to a statement from the UAW on Saturday.

Jones, who was accused as "UAW Official A" in federal court papers Thursday of splitting up to $700,000 in union funds with another union official, issued a statement, which was included in a news release from the union.

"The UAW is fighting tooth and nail to ensure our members have a brighter future. I do not want anything to distract from the mission. I want to do what’s best for the members of this great union,” Jones said.

© Kathleen Galligan, Detroit Free Press From left, Rory Gamble, UAW vice president and national Ford director, takes his place at the table beside United Auto Workers (UAW) union President Gary Jones during the Ford UAW contract ceremonial handshake at Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Mich., Monday, July 14th, 2019.

Gamble also issued a statement, according to the union, saying the UAW would continue to fight for its members.

“Together throughout the last few months, we’ve achieved substantial victories for UAW members and we know that we have more work to do. We want better health care coverage, better salaries and respect for our work. That will not change,” Gamble said.

Corruption probe widens

The surprising development Saturday follows the latest criminal charges in the UAW corruption probe. Edward Robinson, a union official in Missouri, was accused Thursday in a criminal information of conspiracy to embezzle union funds and to defraud the United States. Robinson's regional office was the same one Jones had once led. Vance Pearson, the current director of that office, Region 5, is on leave facing his own charges in the scandal. A dozen people — union and auto company officials — have been charged to date.

Jones and his predecessor Dennis Williams have both been implicated in the probe as unnamed union officials, identified to the Free Press by a source. Federal agents seized more than $32,000 from Jones' home in Canton, west of Detroit, in August, according to the filing Thursday, which said that Jones as Official A had told Robinson that one of his relatives would be taken care of if he took responsibility for the embezzlement.

Jones and Williams have not been charged. A spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Detroit said she could not comment when asked whether charges against Jones would be forthcoming.

Jones' attorney, J. Bruce Maffeo, who is based in New York, responded to a request for comment but did not address the prospect of charges.

"As he has throughout his career, Gary places the members’ interest above his own. He requested a leave of absence so that the union can continue its fight to improve the lives of the UAW’s members and families," said Maffeo, whose areas of practice include white-collar defense and investigations.

Union members react

The news of Jones' leave came as a surprise to union members.

Gerald Crump, an electrician from Macomb Township who has worked at General Motors for 22 years, said Saturday in response to the news: “I really don’t even have a reaction yet. It just happened so fast. We’re two-thirds through negotiations. I figured if anything like this would’ve happened, it would’ve happened at the conclusion of all three contracts. You’d think if he was to step down, it would’ve been at the beginning or the end of the negotiations.”

Ricky Callaway, a parts-handler from Flint and third-generation GM worker, said Saturday: “A lot of stuff is just coming out now. We’re all just following closely what’s really transpiring. We don’t even know if we can trust the union at this point.”

© Phoebe Wall Howard, Detroit Free Press Ricky Callaway, 38, of Flint with his son Carter.

“If he’s guilty of something, he should step down,” said another union member with GM who asked to not be identified out of fear of reprisal.

But this member admits he hasn’t closely followed the scandal case because he was focused on the contract with GM.

“I saw Ford’s contract and they seemed to get a better contract than we did given the job security that they listed with all the plants,” said this union member. “I feel they got a better contract than we did and I’m concerned for our future.”

Another GM union worker, who asked to not be named for the same reason, said her colleagues on social media are unhappy with the agreement the union forged with GM and now they are questioning why Jones is getting a paid leave of absence.

“I don’t think he should go on paid leave because any other employee who steals from the company, they get fired,” this worker said, referencing the allegation of embezzlement by prosecutors in the court papers.

A lot of the UAW members say they feel like the strike against GM was for the UAW leadership to distract the media from the corruption scandal, the worker said.

“We got the same deal as GM initially offered us except an $11,000 ratification bonus rather than an $8,000, so a lot of people feel the point of the strike was to get their name out of the media,” the worker said.

Shocked but not surprised

Pastor Chris Martin, whose congregation at Cathedral of Faith Church in Flint includes UAW factory workers, said after prayer service on Saturday, he was shocked but not surprised when he saw the text message about the leave.

"I think it’s good for the UAW for Mr. Jones to just try and step aside right now so they can deal with these allegations against him, whether they be true or false. I think a paid leave is justified until a person is proven guilty. I think the UAW has to do whatever it can to protect itself from government intervention. Members understand they are protected as long as the UAW has autonomy and sovereignty. What we don’t want is government intrusion,” Martin said.

Jones moving aside, Martin said, “is a good move to protect the membership.”

Frank Trubiro, vice president of UAW Local 659 located across the street from the GM Flint Assembly plant, said he received a text alert Saturday about 9 a.m. from his local president.

“At our level, we have very limited information,” Trubiro said. “We’re just reading between the lines like everybody else. Nobody is sure how far it goes or how deep it goes. That’ll be determined. It needs to be addressed.”

Jones going on leave is “positive” because it shows “the rest of us the UAW is taking steps to get this taken care of and put it behind us so we can get to the business of representing our workers. And we had great public support during the strike.”

Labor expert: 'No logic about this moment'

Harley Shaiken, a University of California-Berkeley professor who specializes in labor affairs, said the timing of Jones' departure suggests he was pressured to go.

“There was a large amount of anger and also disappointment by so many workers who would often raise the notion that the president was under a dark cloud in conversations without being asked,” he said. “Taking a leave of absence was clearly necessary — but it is both unprecedented and deeply troubling. There’s no logic about this moment. It would’ve been more appropriate and more constructive to do it before the contract talks. It would’ve been a blow but it would’ve been in the past.”

Shaiken added: “To do it two-thirds of the way through before critical negotiations? The logic is not apparent. I suspect that it wasn’t that he decided at this moment to step aside but that there wasn’t an alternative.”

He questioned whether paid leave is appropriate.

“I think it is troubling but it does raise the issue — he is innocent until proven guilty in a court. Yet it’s still troubling, given the nature of the allegations and the extent of those who have been convicted to date or are under indictment,” Shaiken said.

Meanwhile, Shaiken commended the choice of Gamble to take the helm.

“Rory Gamble is a superb choice. He has been an effective leader. He is very seasoned. He’s the values of the union and a vision. He is a good choice.”

Looking ahead

A key document will be the agreement between Jones and the UAW for his “leave.” A paid leave typically means a paid vacation unless the agreement has other enforceable terms to recoup the pay.

Gary Klotz, a longtime labor lawyer in Detroit, said those provisions would not be released to the public but could include: Under what circumstances would Jones have to repay salary; who would pay legal fees; what would trigger a switch from a leave to a separation; would Jones have to reimburse the UAW for any funds found to be obtained illegally?; is there any agreement not to sue the UAW about his employment?

"Jones' tenure as UAW president is effectively over. He will not return from this leave to serve as president again," Klotz predicted. "The leave is a fig leaf for him to exit with some dignity before the likely indictment or guilty plea."

He added: "A UAW-represented employee at a Detroit Three company or any other company who is accused of embezzlement would be suspended pending investigation without pay, if not immediately discharged."

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com or 313-223-4272. Follow him on Twitter: @_ericdlawrence. Contact Phoebe Wall Howard: 313-222-6512 or phoward@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @phoebesaid.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: UAW President Gary Jones to take leave of absence as corruption investigation escalates