Celebrating Amy Chin-Lai: Winner of the 2025 Emerging Leader Award

We are proud to announce that NPEU President, Amy Chin-Lai, has been honored by the Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO. She won the inaugural Emerging Leader Award at the 2025 Evening with Labor celebration.

This prestigious award is given to a unionist under the age of 35 who exemplifies leadership, initiative, and innovation, and who upholds the core principles of solidarity and equity in the labor movement. Amy represents all of this and more, and her fellow NPEU members weighed in to celebrate her achievement:

Christine Ball-Blakely, an NPEU Executive Board member and Unit President said, “Amy is extraordinary. She leads our local by example and shows exactly why solidarity is a verb. She devotes countless hours to thankless yet critical tasks, unites our members in common struggle, and empowers us to rise and fight for ourselves, each other, and the entire working class. Through it all, she never fails to laugh - a reminder that joy is critical fuel for our work. Our blossoming local is the fruit of Amy’s efforts, and her leadership gives me hope for the future in these perilous times.”

“Amy is a fierce advocate. In the time I’ve had the privilege of working and connecting with Amy, she consistently empowers NPEU’s staff and all the unit members represented. Her dedication to improving the rights of workers makes the hard work feel so much easier. It’s been an honor to learn from her. NPEU is in great hands under her leadership,” added Lauren Wallace, who also serves on the NPEU Executive Board and as President of her unit. 

Amy’s journey in the labor movement began like so many others—with a fight for dignity at work. She stepped into union work by challenging salary inequities at her workplace, and quickly became a trusted voice and leader among her peers. Before long, she was negotiating her first contract at Action Squared, helping win a landmark collective bargaining agreement that would become a model for others across NPEU.

From there, Amy was elected Vice President for Representation, where she revolutionized how we train and support our stewards. She built systems from the ground up: creating a monthly stewards training series, developing resources for contract enforcement, and introducing a post-ratification onboarding process to strengthen engagement from day one.

In Fall 2023, Amy stepped into the role of Interim President during a difficult moment for our union—and was later elected to the position. Under her leadership, NPEU has flourished. We’ve doubled our membership, negotiated more than 15 strong first contracts (including at the Urban Institute and ACLU National), and launched new initiatives like our Bargaining Academy to cultivate and prepare a new generation of rank-and-file leaders.

Amy’s leadership is not confined to the bargaining table. She has represented NPEU’s values in the broader labor movement—speaking at the IFPTE Constitutional Convention in support of a resolution calling for peace in Gaza, and at a reproductive justice rally outside the AFL-CIO headquarters, advocating for a national labor conference on the issue. She also addressed the IFPTE Manitoba Legislative Conference in January 2025, uplifting the need to organize nonprofit workers nationwide.

Through every challenge—whether at NLRB proceedings, in difficult negotiations, or behind the scenes mentoring stewards and supporting fellow officers—Amy leads with a deep sense of humility and purpose. She continues to work full-time as a software developer while tirelessly dedicating herself to the union and its members.

Amy, your NPEU family couldn’t be prouder. Thank you for your dedication, your vision, and your unwavering belief in the power of workers. This award is a testament to the impact you’ve already made—and just the beginning of what’s to come.

Congratulations, Amy, on being named the 2025 Emerging Leader!