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Summary:
Singapore and Chile are the fourth and fifth countries to sign trade agreements with the United States that include labor provisions. The first three were Canada and Mexico under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and Jordan under the U.S.-Jordan Free Trade Agreement. These agreements build on historical U.S. support and promotion of worker rights through the International Labor Organization and U.S. trade laws. Major issues for Congress are: (1) do these agreements balance the promotion of worker rights with trade and investment opportunities for businesses; and (2) are these agreements appropriate role models for future trade agreements? The U.S.Chile Free Trade Agreement (H.R. 2738) was implemented by P.L. 108-77, and the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (H.R. 2739) was implemented as P.L. 108-78, both on September 3, 2003.1 This report will be updated as events warrant.
