Labor Unions

Josh Hawley's Pro-Union Bill Would Let Washington Write Your Contract

The GOP wants to be the party of labor. The Faster Labor Contracts Act isn't the way to do that.

C. Jarrett Dieterle | 5.16.2026 7:00 AM

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Teamsters President Sean O'Brien speaks about the Faster Labor Contracts Act (Teamsters/Press Release)

In recent years, observers have closely tracked the rise of pro-union sentiments on the political right. During his reelection campaign, President Donald Trump garnered headlines for skipping a presidential debate to visit United Auto Workers (UAW), who were on strike in Michigan, while officials like Vice President JD Vance and Sen. Josh Hawley (R–Mo.) have made waves for their pro-union bent. Perhaps most prominently, Teamsters President Sean O'Brien was featured as a speaker at the GOP convention.

But to this point, any actual legislation emanating from the pro-labor right has failed to go anywhere in Congress. That may soon change.

A Hawley-backed bill, known as the Faster Labor Contracts Act (FLCA), seems to be picking up steam and may soon pass the House of Representatives. Unfortunately, the FLCA is a trifecta of bad public policy: It suffers from constitutional infirmities, revives a corrupt government agency, and takes away the voice of both businesses and workers.

Earlier this Congress, Hawley introduced the FLCA in the Senate, alongside one other Republican senator and three Democratic senators; he has since picked up another Republican and 10 more Democrats. Companion legislation in the House has 99 cosponsors, 17 of which are Republican.

The FLCA is designed to expedite the process of labor negotiations once a union is recognized in a........

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