Six-State Conference Brings Workers Together

On November 4-5, RWDSU members from Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania, upstate New York, Ohio, Michigan and West Virginia came together in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for the annual Six-State Conference. It was the largest such meeting in many years, attracting over 160 members, many of them shop stewards and many of them first-time attendees, for important training to help them serve fellow members. In addition to a steward training course, which focused on handling grievances and duty of representation responsibilities, there were sessions dedicated to workplace health and safety and also political action and involvement.

Officers and representatives from throughout the RWDSU were also on hand for a special tribute to retired RWDSU Regional Director Randy Belliel, who was honored for his dedication to the members of the RWDSU throughout his 40-year career of union activism in the Midwest.

"This is a special organization where everyone from the top on down fights to make lives better for working people, and I am proud to have spent my life working with everyone here," Belliel said.