Trade-Focused Democrats Press Administration to Ramp Up International Labor Enforcement
Democratic trade leaders in Congress urged the Trump administration on Sept. 19 to take major action to address trade-related labor violations overseas. Weak foreign freedom-of-association and collective bargaining rights enable substandard wages in other countries and exert downward pressure on U.S. wages, wrote Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden of Oregon, House Ways and Means Committee ranking member Richard Neal of Massachusetts, Finance International Trade and Customs Subcommittee ranking member Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, and Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee ranking member Bill Pascrell of New Jersey in a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Labor Secretary Alex Acosta and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
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Executive branch agencies are due to issue decisions by the end of Oct. 19, that will show whether the administration is truly committed to leveling the playing field for U.S. workers or “whether it is content to stand by and allow U.S. wages and working conditions to be eroded by foreign labor practices,” the lawmakers said. First, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and agency budget submissions for fiscal year 2019 suggest the administration isn’t committed to effective labor enforcement, the letter says. Further, the administration hasn’t sought funds authorized through the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act’s Trade Enforcement Trust Fund to enhance prosecutions for trade agreement violations, the letter says.
The four senators said they expect the administration to finalize NAFTA labor proposals by the end of this month, which they said should be fully enforceable and tangibly improve a labor regime that has “contributed to and fostered wage stagnation.” Finally, the Department of Labor, in consultation with USTR and State, is scheduled to issue assessments soon on labor issues for Colombia, and the Dominican Republic, but has missed recent deadlines for other assessments. Missed assessment deadlines or "calls for additional discussions without specific action to ensure that these countries adhere to their obligations" will "indicate that the Administration is unwilling or unable to use tools available to it to address the impact of substandard worker rights in these countries on American workers." USTR and DOL didn’t comment.