The RWDSU Chicago Joint Board last week conducted a Shop Stewards training to help members build skills that will allow them to assist fellow employees and ensure the union contract is followed in their workplace. Chicago Joint Board President Lisa Russel and Treasurer Ryan McIntyre led the event. Steward trainings not only impart valuable skills, but provide an opportunity for RWDSU members from different shops to build worker solidarity and discuss common issues they face.

Today, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU), announced that workers at the Fresenius kidney dialysis facility in Mobile, Alabama, voted unanimously to ratify their first contract. The negotiations committee worked tirelessly to secure a strong contract that ensures workers’ concerns will be heard. This contract will protect the hard-working patient care technicians that provide critical care to patients in Mobile.

“With two-day Prime shipping, Amazon fulfillment workers currently face speeds of 200-300 orders per hour in 12-hour shifts. They struggle already to maintain that pace. If Amazon plans to effectively double the speed, it must also address existing workforce needs and ensure its workers are safe. Increasing fulfillment speeds means they need to hire more workers, under more sustainable speeds that don’t put worker’s lives in jeopardy.” said Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU).

Councilman Rory Lancman, a candidate for Queens District Attorney, announced the endorsement of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) and their 45,000 members in New York.