NASHVILLE — Vonda McDaniel, a longtime labor leader whose advocacy for workers made her one of Tennessee’s most influential voices in the labor movement, died Tuesday in Nashville. She was 60.
The cause of death has not been released.
The Central Labor Council of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, which represents more than 40 labor unions across the region, announced her passing. McDaniel had served as the council’s president since 2013 and was widely recognized for championing workers’ rights and economic opportunity throughout Middle Tennessee.
A Nashville native, McDaniel graduated from McGavock High School before earning her degree from Tennessee State University.
She began her labor career in the early 1990s while working at the Bridgestone Firestone plant in La Vergne. As a member of the United Rubber Workers, she rose from shop steward to a respected union leader and later became active in the United Steelworkers and its Women of Steel leadership program, where she mentored and trained future labor advocates.
Throughout her career, McDaniel helped launch or lead several organizations focused on worker advocacy and community development, including Stand Up Nashville, the Nashville Justice League, Music City Construction Careers (MC3) and Tennessee for All, a coalition of labor, faith and community groups working to expand economic opportunity across the state.
Her leadership extended well beyond organized labor. McDaniel served on the Metropolitan Nashville Convention Center Authority board beginning in 2009, eventually becoming chair of its procurement and development committee. She also served on the boards or leadership teams of Emerge Tennessee, the AFL-CIO Racial Justice Task Force and the AFL-CIO Executive Council.
In 2017, she was elected a vice president of the national AFL-CIO Executive Council, giving her a larger platform to advocate for working families while remaining deeply involved in Nashville’s labor and civic communities.
McDaniel had announced plans to retire from the Central Labor Council at the end of 2026. She had also been selected to serve as co-executive director of the Highlander Research and Education Center, where she planned to continue organizing and leadership development work throughout the South.
She was also active in Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, the A. Philip Randolph Institute and the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.
Following news of her death, labor leaders and elected officials across Tennessee remembered McDaniel as a tireless advocate for workers and social justice.
“Vonda was one of the strongest voices for working people our state has ever known. She always led with her heart and never lost sight of the people she was fighting for,” Billy Dycus, president of the Tennessee AFL-CIO, said in a statement. “Her legacy will continue to inspire generations of union members and labor leaders for years to come.”
Mike Cortese, a member of the Metro Nashville Council, said McDaniel’s work transformed the city through her commitment to workers, particularly those from underserved communities.
National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler called McDaniel “a fearless leader, a tireless advocate for working people and a cherished member of our AFL-CIO family.”
Friends and colleagues also remembered McDaniel as a woman guided by faith, service and compassion. Raised in the tradition of First Baptist Church, Capitol Hill, she was known for mentoring emerging leaders and for her belief that lasting change comes when communities work together.
McDaniel is survived by her mother, Carole McDaniel; her sister, Valinda Burks; her niece, Jewel Burks Solomon, and nephew, Myles Sidney, along with extended family and countless friends, colleagues and fellow labor advocates.
Visitation will take place Tuesday, July 7, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at First Baptist Church, Capitol Hill, 625 Rosa L. Parks Blvd., with the Ivy Beyond the Wall ceremony scheduled for 6:30 p.m. A Celebration of Life will be held Wednesday, July 8, at noon at the Music City Center, 201 Rep. John Lewis Way S.
McDaniel’s supporters say her legacy will endure through the workers she represented, the leaders she mentored and the organizations she helped strengthen during more than three decades of public service and labor advocacy.
