Brussels, 22/05/2014 (Agence Europe) - Meeting in Berlin on 21 May, the leaders of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and of the main US union grouping, the American Federation of Labor - Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), called for the free-trade agreement between the EU and US (the TTIP) to be a “gold standard” trade deal that improves living and working conditions on both sides of the Atlantic.
Increased transatlantic trade can create new jobs and shared prosperity, but it must also be beneficial for all working people, say the ETUC and AFL-CIO in a joint press release. “While past US trade agreements, like NAFTA, have helped boost the corporate bottom line, they have suppressed wages and workplace rights, shrinking the middle class in the US, Mexico and Canada”, said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. “Trade policy for the privileged few must end. TTIP must work for the people, or it won't work at all”, he insisted. “European and American trade unionists are united in supporting a free-trade deal between the EU and the US that promotes workers' rights, upholds public services and procurement, democratic decision-making and international conventions”, added ETUC General Secretary Bernadette Ségol.
For both the ETUC and AFL-CIO, the TTIP must guarantee the adoption and application by all parties of the core conventions of the International Labour Organisation, including the freedom for workers to organise a union, collectively bargain with employers and strike when necessary. All provisions must be rejected - including the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) - that allow corporations, banks, hedge funds and other private investors to circumvent normal legislative, regulatory and judicial processes. The ETUC and AFL-CIO also call for the TTIP not to undermine the role of the state in nurturing innovation, economic development and technological transformation, and they call for it not to constrain national and local choices on the provision of public services, notably healthcare, education and environmental protection. However, the ETUC and AFL-CIO call for the TTIP to maintain the right of governments to make choices about procurement that alleviate unemployment and to fight against social injustice. The TTIP must not be used to set a ceiling on workers' rights, environmental protection or any other public interest measure, but must support ever-improving standards. Lastly, it must be aligned with international agreements to protect the environment, and negotiated through a transparent and democratic process. (EH)