Opinion Pieces

Originally appeared in the Washington Examiner.
By: Representative Rick W. Allen (GA-12) and F. Vincent Vernuccio

Congress has a duty to help President Trump put American workers first. Already under the Trump Administration, blue-collar workers have seen the fastest wage growth since the start of any presidency in the last 60 years. But while the forthcoming tax cuts and spending reforms will deliver even more results, Congress also needs to modernize federal law to empower workers—and improve labor unions—in order to deliver a 21^st century economy that benefits the working class.

The Employee Rights Act of 2025 (ERA) is the best path forward. I (Rep. Allen) introduced this transformative legislation today. The ERA will protect workers’ rights while refocusing unions on their core mission of representing employees. It will give workers and entrepreneurs the confidence they need to champion their own future and shape our economy for decades to come.

The ERA protects and promotes the foundational elements of the modern economy. It ensures that workers of all backgrounds can continue to pursue their own American Dream by guaranteeing their right to decide how and when they work as independent contractors. That fundamental right has long been under attack and in danger due to conflicting federal laws, regulations, and rulings. The ERA also ensures that Americans can continue to pursue entrepreneurship through franchising by permanently clarifying the shifting and incompatible “joint employer” standards that have threatened this longstanding small business model.

Crucially, the ERA also provides workers with the indisputable ability to make decisions that are best for them regarding unionization. It guarantees every worker’s right to a secret-ballot election, protecting them from potential intimidation and reprisal. Additionally, in right-to-work states, like Georgia, the ERA empowers workers who have opted out of union membership to negotiate their own contracts. Currently, if a workplace is organized, those workers are required to be represented by the union, even if it is against their wishes. Not only would this critical reform help them find a better workplace arrangement, but it would also free unions to focus solely on the workers who actually want their representation. This is a win-win.

Additionally, workers gain historic privacy protections under the ERA. Currently, unions have unfettered access to workers’ personal contact information at companies they are seeking to organize, including employee’s home addresses and phone numbers. The ERA puts workers first by letting them choose what information unions can access. It also lets workers opt-in to union political spending on an annual basis, undoing the current system in which workers are automatically forced to fund political activities they may personally oppose. These reforms will incentivize unions to better serve workers at the highest level in order to win their support.

Perhaps most importantly, the Employee Rights Act eliminates loopholes that can distract unions from faithfully representing workers’ needs and wishes. It prohibits DEI provisions in collective bargaining agreements, ensuring that all workers are treated equally. It ends the judicially created exemption for union-related violence and extortion, so that such illegal acts are treated appropriately under federal law. The ERA also protects workers from discriminatory and harassing language, which the Biden NLRB allowed in the context of unionization campaigns.

These protections will encourage unions to win the support of workers fairly, leading to workplaces defined by respect and unity, not anger and division. The ERA even helps unions focus on American workers by requiring that unionization elections only allow voting by workers who are lawfully authorized to be employed in the United States.

Labor unions and their allies will no doubt attack these proposals as “anti-union,” but that reflects a profound misunderstanding of the Employee Rights Act. The whole point of unionization is to protect the rights of employees, and this proposal does exactly that. It protects their right to free and fair elections, personal privacy, and economic independence. It also protects their right to be free from harassment, intimidation, and reprisal. At their best, labor unions uphold these rights which are essential to creating the best economy for all Americans.

The Employee Rights Act has long enjoyed strong support among Republicans in both the House and Senate, to say nothing of the overwhelming majority of Americans, according to years of public polling. With the GOP holding both Congress and the White House, it deserves consideration as soon as possible. President Trump is already delivering for working Americans. Truly empowering workers—and improving unions—will help them rise and thrive for generations to come.

Representative Rick W. Allen, a Republican, represents Georgia’s 12^th Congressional District and serves as Chairman of the Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee. F. Vincent Vernuccio is president of the Institute for the American Worker.