[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.39 However, it is difficult to makethis case convincingly because of the diversity of labor standards incountries with differing national characteristics, policies, and institu-tions.Furthermore, the literature review summarized above suggeststhat there are no compelling theoretical and empirical grounds to38It should be noted, however, that in a  quiet maneuver led by RepresentativeBernard Sanders, (Ind-VT) and Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), the 105th U.S.Congress enacted the Bonded Child Labor Elimination Act, and it was signed byPresident Clinton on October 10, 1997.The Act is designed to prohibit imports ofgoods made by indentured child laborers, that is, children who are sold into bondageby their parents and who must work for an extended period of time to gain their free-dom.It is not yet clear how this Act is to be enforced, and, as already stated, it isunlikely to effect significant improvement in the conditions of poverty that are char-acteristic of the families involved.For more details, see Greenhouse (1997b).39Bernard Hoekman has suggested to the author that some existing features in theWTO such as the agreements on pre-shipment inspection and trade-related intellec-tual property rights could be helpful in facilitating the provision of information tointernational traders and consumers.b723_Chapter-19.qxd 7/15/2009 10:02 AM Page 774774 R.M.Sternsupport the international enforcement and harmonization of laborstandards.40What then should be done on the global level? Issues of interna-tional labor standards have historically been the province of the ILO,which is often criticized because it lacks a mechanism for enforcementof discipline to raise labor standards and because it espouses an inter-ventionist social agenda.While these criticisms may be true, they missthe point.If one looks at the economic development of the UnitedStates, Western Europe, Japan and other advanced industrializedcountries over the past century, it is evident that the real incomes ofworkers have increased dramatically and that the conditions of workhave improved concomitantly.To achieve these improvements inlabor standards has required an active role for government togetherwith broad public support in individual nations.In recent decades,there have been similar improvements in a substantial number ofdeveloping countries, especially in East and Southeast Asia as well asin Latin America.What the historical record suggests therefore is thatpolicies are needed currently to provide technical and financial assis-tance to low-income countries to promote economic progress, whichin turn will help these countries to enhance the economic welfare oftheir citizenry.With sufficient encouragement and increased financial support,the ILO can provide a multilateral forum that would serve tostrengthen its role and authority in pursuing improved labor stan-dards internationally.While the United States and many of the EUmember countries wanted to link labor standards and trade in the40Issue can therefore be taken with the point made in the OECD Report (1996,p.14) that:  Even though efforts to improve observance of core labour standardsmay be facilitated by economic growth and freer trade, there are reasons to doubtthat market forces alone will automatically improve the standards.Hence, the impor-tance of more direct promotion mechanisms. The key words here are automatically and  direct. As already discussed and as Srinivasan also notes in hiscomment on Stern (1997), it may well be that labor-market failures are present inmany countries.But if this is the case, the optimal policies are domestic in character,and it is by no means obvious why international policies are preferred and how theycan better overcome the domestic market failures at issue.b723_Chapter-19.qxd 7/15/2009 10:02 AM Page 775Labor Standards and International Trade 775December 1996 WTO Ministerial Meeting, their efforts were unsuc-cessful.The challenge then is to reinforce the institutional role forwhich the ILO has been designed.41If the responsibility for monitoring and helping developingcountries to improve their labor standards is centered in the ILO,there is no obvious case to be made for the United States and otherindustrialized countries to incorporate labor standards issues intotheir national and regional trade policies and trade agreements.It has to be acknowledged nonetheless that adherence to certainspecified labor standards has been made a condition in U.S.prefer-ential trade arrangements, especially in the GSP and in the laborside agreement in the NAFTA.There is not much evidence, how-ever, that actual or threatened withdrawal of GSP has had muchimpact on developing country labor standards.Further, the actionsinitiated to date under the NAFTA labor side agreement have pri-marily involved alleged noncompliance with the right of freedom ofassociation.41In considering the spectrum of international organizations that have been createdover the years, Srinivasan (1995, 1997) points out that these organizations have beenspecialized according to function.For example, he notes the particular rules andmandates that apply to such organizations as the: ILO; GATT/WTO; UNCTAD;World Bank; International Monetary Fund; Universal Postal Union; and Berne andParis conventions.The issue then is whether it is desirable and efficient to require thatindividual organizations assume responsibilities for rules for which the organizationswere not designed.More specifically, he argues that issues of labor standards are bestleft to the ILO and should not be mandated to the GATT/WTO, which has beendesigned to articulate, monitor, and enforce the rules governing the internationaltrading system.For similar views, see Bhagwati (1995), Charnovitz (1995), andPangestu (1996).Charnovitz (1995) in particular offers suggestions for reinvigorat-ing the ILO and changes especially in U.S.policies that would serve to strengthenthe ILO.Some observers might take issue with the above characterization of the GATT/WTO, arguing that it constitutes a forum for discussion and negotiation on trade-related matters, and, in this light, should include issues of labor standards.But evenif this were the case, there is a genuine possibility that the WTO could become over-loaded if it were to take on labor standards as well as other new issues like theenvironment and competition policy.b723_Chapter-19.qxd 7/15/2009 10:02 AM Page 776776 R.M.SternThe experience of the NAFTA thus does not provide much guid-ance for dealing with issues of labor standards in other regional tradingarrangements, such as those currently existing in Latin America andAsia.The same may be true of the experience of the EU, except inso-far as income transfers among EU member countries may have helpedto harmonize standards to some extent.The review of the empiricalevidence on labor standards and U.S.trade suggests that there is nocase to be made that low foreign labor standards are harmful toAmerican firms and workers.Moreover, foreign direct investmentappears to be more attracted to countries with high rather than lowlabor standards [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]