Democrats win major concessions from Bush admin. on labor, environmental issues in trade deals

Today's Washington Post reports on the major breakthrough in trade agreements.  Democrats obtained key concessions from the Bush administration on environmental and labor issues.  The Post documented the importance of the labor provisions for Democrats: 

The key to the agreement, said those involved, was the Bush administration's reluctant assent to Democratic demands for more stringent labor rules. Under the new policy, enforceable labor provisions will be written into the texts of trade deals to protect the rights of workers abroad to organize unions and bargain collectively, while banning forced labor, child labor and workplace discrimination.

The Bush administration resisted such rules, reflecting the fears of business interests that they could boost the power of U.S. labor unions, opening a backdoor for them to rewrite U.S. law to their advantage. But the administration concluded that it had to swallow the labor rules lest its trade deals die in a Congress controlled by the other party.

The deal also includes an agreement between the White House and Congress to develop a "strategic worker assistance and training initiative" that would increase job training and financial assistance for communities that suffer job losses to overseas competition and automation. Democrats said those programs would go beyond existing benefits, but they provided few details.

The New York Times also noted the environmental protections secured: 

It would also require trading partners to enforce environmental laws already on their books and comply with several international environmental agreements.

The new agreement applies to pending deals with Peru and Panama.  We'll continue to monitor this development.  Progressives have been pushing for labor and environmental protections in trade agreements for years.  Too many elected officials were willing to vote for trade deals without those key provisions.  Those days are over. 

Posted by Staff on Friday, May 11 | 760 comments | Permalink