On Labor Day, Rep. Summer Lee Introduces Bill to Repeal Restrictions, Affirm Union Autonomy & Self-Governance

Bill Text (PDF) 

PITTSBURGH, PA – SEPTEMBER 1, 2025 — Today on Labor Day, Congresswoman Summer L. Lee (PA-12) introduced the Union Participation for All Act to remove the outdated and arbitrary restrictions placed on unions in the Labor-Management Report Disclosure Act (LMRDA). The bill would repeal a section of LMRDA, which would put authority back in the hands of unions—and ultimately workers—to make decisions about who they deem best to fulfill a role in their organization.

For decades, federal law has barred people with certain convictions from union leadership and employment for an arbitrary 13 years. Written in the 1950s era of loyalty tests and political witch hunts, it outlined a scattershot list of disqualifying offenses shaped by Red Scare politics, starting with communism before corruption. Although enacted in the name of “union integrity,” it was a tool of control, imposing restrictions on union self-governance that no other civic, public, or private organizations face. Applied in a society plagued by over-policing and racial bias, this law has become a discriminatory barrier that disproportionately excludes Black and brown workers from union leadership and employment. True union democracy means restoring union autonomy—letting workers, not Washington or Cold War relics, decide their own self-governance.

“This Cold War-era blacklist is an outdated, arbitrary provision coupled with an arbitrary amount of time. Workers are more than capable of regulating their own organizations without unilateral oversight by the federal government,” said Congresswoman Lee. “The Union Participation for All Act gives power back to the people and allows them to decide who they deem best to lead or serve in their unions. It’s time to modernize our labor laws and allow workers to govern themselves.” 

The bill is cosponsored by Rep. Rashida Tlaib (MI-12) and is endorsed by the National Employment Law Project and National Nurses United.

Congresswoman Lee is a champion for workers’ rights. She is a co-sponsor of the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act and recently applauded Magee nurses for winning their union election.

• In July, Rep. Lee and Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) reintroduced the College Athlete Right to Organize Act to ensure college athletes across the country are granted the right to collectively bargain and unionize.
• In June, Rep. Lee joined Congressman Chris Deluzio (PA-17) and five other members of Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation on a letter demanding that the Department of Health and Human Services reverse the firing of workers at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s (NIOSH) Pittsburgh Mining Research Division (PMRD).
• In a House Subcommittee on Education and Workforce in June, Rep. Lee slammed the Trump Administration for attacking unions and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
• In April, Rep. Lee joined Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) and Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in reintroducing the Raise the Wage Act of 2025.

A copy of the bill text can be found here.

Congresswoman Summer Lee serves on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Accountability and the Committee on Education and Workforce. Since taking office in January 2023, she has delivered historic levels of federal investment totaling over $2.4 Billion brought back to Western PA, including over $580 million for infrastructure, over $110 million for affordable transit, over $500 million to keep clean energy manufacturing at home in Pennsylvania, and over $55 million on clean energy efforts in and around schools to help keep our kids and communities safe. These investments will help improve Western Pennsylvania’s infrastructure and transit, ensure cleaner air and drinking water, lower housing costs, fund research institutions, fuel clean manufacturing, fund STEM innovation and entrepreneurship, boost workforce development, and create thousands of good paying union jobs.  Lee and her team have also delivered casework and constituent services to over 3,000 constituents with issues ranging from helping our seniors and disabled community access Medicare and social security to helping folks secure housing and helping families with immigration support and passports.