Congresswoman Pou Honored by New Jersey AFL-CIO With Legislative Award

ATLANTIC CITY, NJ – Congresswoman Nellie Pou (D-NJ-09) last night attended the New Jersey AFL-CIO’s 31st Labor Awards dinner and accepted the group’s annual Legislative Award for her record of service on behalf of working Americans.

“You know that you can count on me to fight for the right to organize, to combat policies that weaken worker rights, and to stand in solidarity with the working men and women of labor,” Congresswoman Pou told the congregation of labor leaders from across New Jersey and the nation.

“Congresswoman Pou has stood out among her colleagues as an advocate for workers and has illustrated time and time again that her priorities in Congress are the same as our member’s priorities – affordable quality health care, fair wages,  the right to join a union and a supporter of collective bargaining,” said New Jersey State AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech. “She has earned this recognition and we are proud to stand alongside of her as a true friend of working people.”

Serving her first term in Washington, Pou has already amassed a record of support for key priorities for working Americans, including for the PRO Act, the TSA Workforce Act, the Paycheck Fairness Act, and the Protect America’s Workforce Act. Additionally, Pou has been outspoken in opposing the Trump administration’s attacks on federal workers, collective bargaining, and the National Labor Relations Board. 

During her remarks, Pou also paid tribute to her predecessor, the late Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr.

“I came to Washington with big shoes to fill, succeeding my mentor and friend Bill Pascrell. I know Bill won this award, too. Bill was the best friend of the working man and so this is a responsibility I take seriously,” said Pou.

The text of Congresswoman Pou’s speech is below.

Prepared Remarks of Congresswoman Nellie Pou

June 17, 2025

Good evening. Hello everybody. My name is Congresswoman Nellie Pou and I am so happy to be here tonight with the working men and women of our great state. 

I want to thank Charlie Wowkanech, Laurel Brennan, and the entire state AFL-CIO team. Charlie you are a legendary figure, and Laurel you are a model of leadership and responsibility and I am honored to stand with you both. 

Even though I am in my first year in Congress, my support for organized labor is as unshakeable as it was when I was in Trenton.

A recent poll found Americans support unions more than big businesses by the widest margin in 60 years.

Unions are more popular now than in generations for good reason: Americans know they protect your livelihood. 

Americans want greater workplace security, they want better wages, and they want measures to strengthen unions. This is why one of the first bills I wanted to cosign was the Protecting the Right to Organize, or PRO Act. 

While we are leading the way in New Jersey, Americans across the nation also demand a higher federal minimum wage. I hear them and I proudly support raising the minimum wage which has not been elevated in 16 years.

Yet, we are unable to move these common sense items. We can’t move them because Republicans in charge in Washington won’t focus on any of these things. 

After months of chaos, the top priority for the majority party in Congress is enacting another fat tax cut for the richest Americans. Who will pay the tab? Working Americans, with their health care and their job security. 

And we see it in the long stream of White House executive orders that harm working Americans. The order seeking to end collective bargaining for public sector workers remains an outrage. Attempts to privatize the Post Office would be catastrophic for this country. Which is why I support measures to push back on both.

Mass firings at the VA, the Department of Education, IRS, HHS, and other agencies have been disastrous for hundreds of thousands of workers and their communities. I am working with my colleagues in fighting union-busting and expanding the right to unionize to groups like TSA workers. The voices of AFL-CIO members are critical to beating back this onslaught.

Can you believe that after everything that is happening at Newark Airport and elsewhere, Republicans still did not defend FAA workers. 

And when the President came for the NLRB, I called on him and the courts to make things right. I will continue speaking out against these and other anti-worker attacks.

I am excited to be the only New Jersey Democrat on the House Transportation Committee. This panel is critical for our state. My priorities are bringing home resources to put New Jersey to work rebuilding aging bridges, expanding mass transit, and updating the pipes under our streets.

I gratefully accept the AFL-CIO’s Legislative Award. Defending workers isn’t just a political position for me: it is a bedrock foundation to everything I believe in. 

I came to Washington with big shoes to fill, succeeding my mentor and friend Bill Pascrell. I know Bill won this award, too. Bill was the best friend of the working man and so this is a responsibility I take seriously.

I came to Congress to support workers by raising wages, protecting workers, and bringing jobs home to the United States. Those are some of my highest priorities. 

Battleground seats like mine will determine if we will have a Democratic House. Our district and New Jersey will determine control of the chamber. It is that important. 

My legislative record speaks for itself. You know that you can count on me to fight for the right to organize, to combat policies that weaken worker rights, and to stand in solidarity with the working men and women of labor. 

Thank you for this recognition. My biggest honor is standing with working men and women. You help make this state and this country great. Thank you so much.

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