Chip Rogers, President and CEO, Americans for Fair Treatment

For too long, America’s workers have been treated like passengers in the backseat of their own careers, told where to go, how to think, and who gets to speak for them. The Employee Rights Act changes that.

Senator Tim Scott’s newly reintroduced Employee Rights Act of 2025 is exactly what this moment calls for: a worker-first reform that restores fairness, freedom, and accountability in the modern workplace. It’s about empowering the individual, not the institution.

At Americans for Fair Treatment (AFFT), we hear from public employees every day who simply want the freedom to make their own choices. They want to decide for themselves whether to join a union, whether to share their personal information, and how their hard-earned money is used. That’s not anti-union. That’s pro-worker.

The Employee Rights Act gets the fundamentals right.

It protects the secret ballot so every worker can make private decisions about union representation without pressure or intimidation. A secret ballot is the cornerstone of democracy, and it should be just as sacred in the workplace as it is at the ballot box.

It safeguards employee privacy so workers are not forced to turn over personal information simply because a union wants access. The bill restores common-sense privacy protections so employees can decide who contacts them and how.

It ensures that workers have a voice even outside a union. The Act recognizes the growing number of Americans who choose to negotiate directly with their employers and respects their right to opt out of representation they didn’t choose, while ensuring that everyone, unionized or not, has the freedom to advocate for themselves.

It provides clarity for modern work by updating the definition of an independent contractor and clarifying joint-employer rules. Millions of Americans now work in flexible arrangements, from franchise owners to freelancers, and they deserve control over their livelihoods, not confusion created by outdated laws.

And it brings transparency and accountability to unions by requiring clearer financial disclosures and stronger oversight of how dues are spent. Workers deserve to know when their money is being used for political causes unrelated to their jobs.

Together, these reforms reflect a simple principle: the American worker should always come first.

For decades, union leaders and bureaucrats have held the power while the workers they claim to represent have been sidelined. The Employee Rights Act flips that equation. It trusts workers to make their own decisions because freedom, not compulsion, is what leads to dignity and progress.

At AFFT, we stand behind any effort that restores fairness, transparency, and individual choice in the workplace. Senator Scott’s legislation does exactly that. It offers a clear vision for a modern labor system rooted in freedom, not fear.

Empowering workers isn’t a partisan issue. It’s an American one. The Employee Rights Act reminds us who the labor movement is supposed to serve: the men and women who do the work.