Members of the RWDSU Southeast Council at Autoneum in Aiken, South Carolina are making a difference in their community by ensuring local students have the tools they need to succeed. As the new school year began, Autoneum members came together to fill backpacks with school supplies for students at North Aiken Elementary School.

Sandra Lee Williams, Deputy Political Director of the RWDSU, was recently awarded the Benjamin L. Hooks Keeper of the Flame Award by the NAACP at their National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. This esteemed recognition honors individuals who continue to make a powerful impact on civil rights, labor, and community justice. Named for the legendary Benjamin L. Hooks, the fifth Executive Director of the NAACP and a tireless champion of equality, the award is one of the organization’s most meaningful tributes.

“What we’ve learned today is that Tyson Foods was in fact at fault for our member’s near life ending injuries, but a worker's life can never be monetarily valued, and it certainly cannot be valued at a few thousand dollars. OSHA’s decision to issue only modest fines in the wake of the devastating boiler explosion at Tyson’s Camilla, Georgia poultry plant is the true embodiment of a broken system that lacks the teeth to protect workers….

Overnight, there was an explosion at Tyson’s Camilla, Georgia poultry plant represented by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU). Stuart Appelbaum, President of the RWDSU, which represents over 15,000 poultry workers at facilities across the southern United States and Edgar Fields, President of the Southeast Council of the RWDSU, issued the following joint statement: