VIDEO: Senator Peters Calls for Passage of the PRO Act to Protect American Workers’ Right to Organize

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) called for passage of the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, comprehensive legislation to protect workers’ right to stand together and bargain for higher wages, better benefits, and safer workplaces. The PRO Act, which Peters again cosponsored and helped reintroduce this Congress, would restore fairness to the economy by strengthening the federal laws that protect workers’ right to join a union freely and fairly.

“Labor unions created the American middle class,” said Senator Peters. “The PRO Act will make it easier for folks to organize, to become a member of a union, and be able to stand up for the rights that they deserve. I come from a union household. My parents were both members of the union. I am who I am because of the love and support that they gave me, and the fact that they were part of a union allowed them to provide for my future. That’s why we’ve got to pass the PRO Act.”

To watch the video, click here.

The PRO Act, which Peters previously spoke in favor of on the Senate floor, would protect every American’s right to organize in their workplace and collectively bargain. The bill specifically includes measures that would:

• Hold employers accountable for violating workers’ rights by authorizing meaningful penalties, facilitating initial collective bargaining agreements, and closing loopholes that allow employers to misclassify their employees as supervisors and independent contractors.

• Empower workers to exercise their right to organize by strengthening support for workers who suffer retaliation for exercising their rights, protecting workers’ right to support secondary boycotts, ensuring workers can collect “fair share” fees, and authorizing a private right of action for violation of workers’ rights.

• Secure free, fair, and safe union elections by preventing employers from interfering in union elections, prohibiting captive audience meetings, and requiring employers to be transparent with their workers.

Peters grew up in a union household, where his mother was a Service Employees International Union (SEIU) steward, and his father was a member of the National Education Association (NEA). During his annual motorcycle tour across Michigan last year, Peters met with local union members and retirees at IBEW Local 131 in Kalamazoo to underscore the need to protect workers’ right to collectively bargain. Peters also joined UAW members on the picket line in Michigan as they negotiated for better wages, benefits, and job security. Then, following the UAW’s historic contracts in 2024, Peters led his colleagues in sending a letter to 13 non-unionized automakers urging them not to illegally block UAW unionization efforts at their manufacturing plants. Peters invited UAW Region 1 Director LaShawn English to be his guest for the 2024 State of the Union Address last year.

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