Tennessee legislators are working to advance an anti-Community Benefits Agreement bill that takes away our power as workers and community members to demand fair wages, investments in our communities, and accountability from corporations set to make billions from development across our state. A Community Benefits Agreement, just like a union contract, guarantees long-term representation of the community and long-term accountability from the corporation. Once again, our state legislature sides with billionaires and big corporations NOT our communities. That's not right. We must put our people and communities first.

Tennessee lawmakers are advancing this bill to shield corporations from accountability and silence worker and community voices as multibillion dollar corporations are announcing major development projects across Tennessee which are reshaping our communities. It is important that residents have a seat at the table to ensure we all benefit. We can't just let incoming corporations like Ford, xAI and other big corporations get a free ride and tax breaks while Tennesseans face rising living costs and low wages.

This bill prevents employers from entering into community benefits agreements which work to ensure new development results in high quality jobs and long-term investments in affordable housing and environmental protections.

It’s clear that legislators who are backed by corporate interests are supporting this anti-CBA bill because they are threatened by the power we’re building across the state. In 2018, residents in Nashville won an agreement, led by Stand Up Nashville, with the developers of the MLS soccer stadium on provisions including a wage floor for high quality jobs, affordable housing, and community services. West Tennessee residents are escalating a grassroots movement to win a similar agreement with Ford’s Blue Oval City for binding commitments from the corporation to local hiring, affordable housing, and environmental protections.

Will you join us to encourage lawmakers to vote NO on this bill and to stand with workers and community members NOT corporations?