Workers Rights Provisions and Free Trade
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) [between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada] enforces workers rights laws through the companion North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC).
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NAFTA will cause a giant sucking sound as jobs go south (1996)
A Giant Sucking Sound:
One million Mexicans enter the work force each year. They need jobs. To get those jobs, President Salinas and
his government have deliberately kept wages down to attract foreign
investment. Mexico has vastly expanded its vocational training programs to
improve worker skill levels. The Mexican government also offers low-cost
loans and tax benefits to companies that build factories in Mexico.
Mexico’s national development strategy is reminiscent of strategies
used by Japan, Korea, and Taiwan a generation ago. Like the strategies
used by those countries, Mexico’s strategy depends on taking jobs from
the US.
The New York Times reports that the skills of Mexican workers already
match the skills of 70% of the labor force in the US. Once properly
trained, Mexican workers’ productivity and work quality equals that of
anyone, anywhere in the world.
Mexico keeps its wages low to attract foreign investment. This strategy
has worked. |
Unmade
in America
The true cost of a global
assembly line
When Congress summoned Enron's top executives this February and made
them sit, hands folded, in front of the TV cameras, we at home were
treated to a familiar display of Washington theater. Because most of these
men had invoked their Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate themselves  |
Maquiladoras just steal jobs; it’s not really “trade” (1996)
To encourage US companies to operate in Mexico, the US government
subsidizes companies in Mexico that ship products to the US by removing
import fees. These factories are known as “maquiladoras.”
US multinationals created almost as many new manufacturing jobs in
Mexico under the Maquiladora Program between 1986 and 1990 as they created
in the US-92,000 jobs versus 97,000 jobs. Most of the goods produced in
the maquiladoras are shipped into the US market. Consequently, most of the
so-called trade between the US and Mexico is not trade as trade is
commonly understood. Rather, it is primarily US companies shipping their
own machinery, components, and raw materials across the border into their
Mexican factories and then shipping their finished or semi-finished goods
back over the border into the US.
Altogether, more than half of the US “exports” to Mexico never
entered Mexico’s domestic market-[actual trade was] less than $8 billion
of the $41 billion of US exports [claimed] in 1992. |
Ten principles of a good trade agreement with Mexico (1996)
At a minimum, a new round of trade negotiations with Mexico should
include the following ten principles:
A coherent, long-term US trade strategy
Negotiate with complete integrity: prohibiting all US officials from
ever working as foreign lobbyists after they leave office
Do not violate national sovereignty
Uphold the legal rights of US citizens: allow judicial review for
disputes by American citizens
Increase jobs and wages for American workers
Increase jobs and wages for Mexican workers: allow unions &
other labor safety rights
Do not make Mexico an export platform into the US: require and
enforce strict rules of origin
Protect the health and safety of all parties: like US FDA standards
Protect the environment: only allow imports that meet US standards
The agreement must be enforced: including well-trained customs
agents and the tools and technology to do their job. |
