This bill, known as the "Empowering Striking Workers Act of 2025," proposes significant changes to federal law to allow individuals involved in a labor dispute to receive unemployment benefits. It achieves this by amending the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and the Social Security Act. Specifically, the bill mandates that unemployment compensation be payable to individuals unable to work due to a labor dispute, treating them as if they were unemployed. Eligibility for these benefits would commence on the earliest of several conditions: 14 days after a strike begins , the date a lockout begins , the date an employer hires permanent replacement workers , or when the dispute ends and the individual becomes unemployed. Additionally, the Social Security Act would be modified to exempt these claimants from the standard work availability requirement typically imposed on unemployment benefit recipients.