Leonard Freel Woodcock (February 15, 1911 – January 16, 2001) was President of the United Auto Workers (UAW) and the first US ambassador to the People's Republic of China after being the last Chief of the US Liaison Office in Beijing.

Woodcock was an active participant in the Civil Rights Movement, marching with Martin Luther King Jr. and adding his voice and political clout to the cause.

He was a champion of both minority and women's rights, pushing for comprehensive nondiscrimination rules and introducing the first union-wide contracted maternity leave in the United States.

"[3] In 1977, Woodcock retired from the union and was named by President Jimmy Carter as head of the United States Liaison Office in Beijing, which, in the absence of full diplomatic relations, served as the de facto U.S. embassy in the People's Republic of China.

During the same period, Woodcock was charged with leading a special delegation to Laos and Vietnam in search of US soldiers who were prisoners-of-war or missing in action.

After leading negotiations to establish full diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China in 1979, Woodcock was appointed the first US ambassador there.

Though some questioned appointing a labor leader to head the delicate diplomatic mission, Carter insisted that he needed a negotiator.