bilaterals.org logo
bilaterals.org logo

labour | workers’ rights

KCTU union member attempting self-immolation as an act of resistance KORUS FTA!
2-Apr-2007 KCTU
Around 3:55 pm, April 1st 2007, Bro. Heo Se-Wook (54), a union member of KCTU, was attempting to suicide by self-immolation as an act of resistance against the Korea-US FTA negotiation. His health condition is very serious and receiving an emergency medical treatment at the Hangang Scared Heart Hospital. We need your solidarity and support.
“Trade for Peace with Israel” falls short
29-Mar-2007 TCF
The next time your Wal-Mart sweatpants read “Made in Jordan QIZ” on the label, consider the relationship between economic integration and peace. The truth might not be what you expect.
GOP may have to swallow tough labor terms for trade deals
28-Mar-2007
As the Bush administration this week pursues a breakthrough with Democratic leaders aimed at gaining congressional approval for new trade agreements, the fate of the deals appears to hinge on whether Republicans are willing to accept tough labor conditions that they assert could boost the power of unions in the United States.
Rangel and Levin unveil new trade policy for America
28-Mar-2007 House and Ways Committee
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles B. Rangel (D-NY), and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Sander Levin (D-MI), today unveiled “A New Trade Policy for America,” to improve pending free trade agreements and allow for bipartisan support in the House.
Japan to ease license to take more Filipino nursing caretakers
24-Mar-2007 Kyodo
Japan’s welfare ministry has decided to introduce a new eased license for nursing caretakers as part of measures to facilitate Japan’s acceptance of Filipino caretakers under a bilateral free trade agreement signed last year, ministry officials said Saturday.
Trade: Support builds for labour, environment standards
22-Mar-2007 IPS
Strong majorities in both developing and developed countries believe that international trade agreements should require governments to abide by minimum labour and environmental standards, according to a new survey of public opinion in 10 countries.
Labor rights in Guatemala aided little by trade deal
16-Mar-2007
Day and night, workers at the port of Quetzal on Guatemala’s Pacific coast load fruit from surrounding plantations and clothing stitched in local factories onto freighters bound for Long Beach, Calif., a flow of goods that has swelled since a Central American trade agreement with the United States took force last year.
Peru: Teacher’s union’s complaints could jeopardize FTA with US
14-Mar-2007
Peru’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism (Mincetur) Mercedes Araoz expressed her concern over complaints that could be taken to international courts by Peru’s teacher’s union, SUTEP and subsequently affect the pending free trade agreement with the United States.
AFL-CIO aims to recast trade authority
7-Mar-2007 Washington Times
The AFL-CIO yesterday announced its plans to defeat renewal of "trade promotion authority," which allows President Bush to submit trade agreements to Congress for an up-or-down vote without amendment.
Anti-labor violence in Colombia imperils US free trade pact
7-Mar-2007 IHT
More than 800 trade unionists have been killed in Colombia over the past six years, by government count, yet the number of those murders solved can be counted on one hand.
Lawmaker rejects USTR proposal on trade pacts
6-Mar-2007
A Bush administration proposal aimed at winning Democratic party support for free trade agreements with Peru, Colombia and Panama falls short of what is needed to strengthen the labor provisions of those pacts, a Democratic lawmaker said on Monday.
Lawmaker rejects USTR proposal on trade pacts
6-Mar-2007 Reuters
A Bush administration proposal aimed at winning Democratic party support for free trade agreements with Peru, Colombia and Panama falls short of what is needed to strengthen the labor provisions of those pacts, a Democratic lawmaker said on Monday. It "misses the point" and shifts the focus from improving conditions for workers to a legalistic debate over whether a foreign country’s law are equivalent to those of the United States, he said.
Don’t repeat NAFTA disaster, trade experts warn
5-Mar-2007 Workday Minnesota
The North American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA, has been a disaster for workers and families, and even social institutions, in the three participating nations — the United States, Canada and Mexico — labor experts from the three countries told Congress. Not only that, they warned that the pending US-Korea Free Trade Agreement would be a repeat of that NAFTA fiasco.
Peru: More suffering for informal economy
1-Mar-2007 Latin America Press
Labor Ministry’s meager efforts to protect workers keep informal laborers on the edge
Labor sees Bush trade talks with Congress failing
25-Feb-2007 Reuters
The Bush administration is unlikely to reach a deal with the Democratic-led Congress to salvage free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and Peru, the AFL-CIO said on Friday.
US inspectors to examine trucks on Mexican soil
23-Feb-2007 Houston Chronicle
US safety inspectors will be allowed to inspect trucks on Mexican soil before they enter the United States under a program announced on Thursday that officials said will remove the last barrier to the long-delayed opening of US highways to Mexican truckers.
US "free trade": Death, drugs and despair in Colombia
23-Feb-2007 Huffington Post
The so-called "free trade" deal between Colombia and the US would likely displace hundreds of thousands of poor rural Colombians from their lands, sending them into far deeper economic despair-and forcing many of them to work for the very groups that violently displaced them from their lands. You can not make this agreement—or any similar past agreement—better by tinkering around the edges.
An open letter to US Congress from the Colombian Oil Workers Union regarding the FTA
20-Feb-2007 Mingas
Our organization, the Colombian Oil Workers Union (USO), knows of your interest regarding the Colombian government’s record on human, labor and union rights within the framework of current discussions about a Free Trade Agreement between Colombia and the United States. We wish to inform you that our Colombian Oil Workers Union (USO), an affiliate of our national labor federation CUT, has been the constant target of government attacks which we summarize below.
US, Emirates seen getting closer to free trade pact
15-Feb-2007 Business Times
Major sticking points still obstruct a deal, including Washington’s insistence on improvement of labourers’ rights and the country’s overall human rights record.
Peru addressing labor concerns to pave way for FTA - Min
14-Feb-2007
Peru is making a concerted effort to address labor concerns being raised by U.S. congressional Democrats in order to ensure approval of the U.S.-Peru free trade pact, Labor Minister Susana Pinilla said Tuesday.