ONLINE VERSION	VOLUME 106 - NUMBER 10 - NOVEMBER 1997

Fast Track Authority Legislation

At press time, the House Ways and Means Committee advanced fast track authorization legislation that weakens labor and environmental protections even more than under the original North American Free Trade Agreement. As written, the legislation would preclude President Clinton from negotiating an agreement under fast track that addresses internationally recognized labor rights or even ensures that trade partners enforce their own standards. Instead, labor and environmental rights are sidelined to a secondary process that would move through Congress separately. This process would be subject to amendment, unlike any pact reached under fast track. Thus, the protective fast track process is in place for trade provisions on the corporate agenda--such as intellectual property rights and investment rules, but any progress on worker rights is open to attack by anti-worker members of Congress. "This is an agreement crafted to assure those who oppose negotiation of worker rights and environmental protections that there will be a virtually impassable set of obstacles that prevent any serious inclusion of these considerations in trade negotiations," said AFL-CIO President John Sweeney. "This proposal, by barring such protections from the core of the fast track agreements, guarantees that these provisions will continue to be sidetracked, downplayed and ignored." Countries would be allowed to change their labor laws to gain competitive trade advantage as long as the changes apply equally to domestic and foreign investors. U.S. negotiators can only consider foreign labor and environmental policies as they function as trade barriers. Organized labor's intense grassroots efforts so far have weakened support for fast track authorization in the House, as indicated by the relatively weak 24-14 vote that moved the legislation. Only four Democrats sided with Republicans in approving authorization language. The Senate Finance Committee earlier approved similar authorizing language after Senate leaders and the administration reached a compromise designed to win Republican support. Sweeney urged all union members to continue the barrage of phone calls, postcards, letters and rallies that have moved this issue to the front burner.