News & Updates from across the RWDSU…
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When corporate decisions bring difficult news, union solidarity makes all the difference. Following the announcement earlier this year that US Tobacco (USTC) will be closing its Nashville, Tennessee facility, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) Local 150 and the Tennessee District Council immediately went to work at the bargaining table securing a better future for members facing the uncertainty.
On September 5, 2026 members, shop stewards, and organizers from the RWDSU Tennessee District Council hit the streets of downtown Nashville for the annual Labor Day Parade and Celebration commemorating the life of Vonda McDaniel, hosted by the Middle Tennessee Central Labor Council (CLC) and the AFL-CIO.
Borden’s Dairy workers in Tennessee have doubled their strength at the bargaining table by combining two contracts into one and winning historic wage increases as a result. RWDSU members at the Chattanooga and Knoxville plants have ratified a new three-year agreement together, which came as the result of solidarity across two locations – proving that what it means to be in a union goes well beyond the pages of a contract.
Members, stewards and union reps of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union this weekend convened at the Millennium Maxwell House Hotel in Nashville for the union's annual Six State Conference. RWDSU officers, staff and worker leaders came together to discuss accomplishments from the previous year, while learning new strategies to grow and make our union stronger. The conference featured guest speakers from the leadership of the Tennessee AFL-CIO, as well as seminars on Health & Safety, Organizing, New Labor Regulations and Immigration. The Six State conference provides a space for members, stewards and union reps from different regions of the country to connect and build solidarity. And by holding the conference in Nashville, RWDSU demonstrated it's commitment to organize and fight for workers everywhere, especially in Right-To-Work states controlled by anti-union politicians.
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