In 2002, the ILO published a report on economically active children. The ILO counted cases of “child labor” that were:

Under the Minimum AgeAs defined by national legislation, in accordance with

accepted international standards

Hazardous to childrenThreatened physical, mental, or emotional well-being

“Worst forms of child labor”Slavery, debt-bondage, forced labor, illicit activities

The ILO Study Found:

246 million child laborers

Between the ages of 5-17

Where does most child labor occur?

Trade & Interdependence Increased in 1990s

Average annual growth of exports compared to GDP (%), 1990-1999

0123456789

World

S. A

sia

E. A

sia

LatinA

merica

Middle

East

Wealthy

nations

Avg annual export growth (%) Avg annual GDP growth (%)

Preparing Tobacco Leaves, Laos, 2000Photo courtesy of International Labor Organization

Cut Flowers

Children work in parts of flower-growing industries of Ecuador and Colombia

U.S. flower imports in 2002: $231 million from Colombia$86 million from Ecuador

Bananas

Child labor is widespread on banana plantations in Ecuador

U.S. banana imports in 2002: $271 million from Ecuador

Vanilla

34% of children age 10-14 work in Madagascar, mostly in agriculture

U.S. vanilla bean imports in 2002: 71% ($115 million) from Madagascar

CocoaAn estimated 15,000 trafficked children work on cocoa and coffee plantations in Cote d’Ivoire

U.S. cocoa imports in 2002: $246 million from Cote d’Ivoire

Fishing Platform Worker, Indonesia, 1995Photo courtesy of David Parker

Shrimp

13% of children age 10-14 work in Thailand; some have been trafficked to work in the fishing industry

U.S. shrimp imports in 2002: 25% from Thailand

Stitching Soccer Balls, Pakistan, 1998Photo courtesy of the International Labour Organization.

Making Surgical Instruments, PakistanPhoto: Ron Ceasar

Surgical Instruments

Children make up 31% of the workforce in surgical instrument manufacture in Sialkot, Pakistan

U.S. imports of medical equipment in 2002: $29 million from Pakistan

Mine Worker, Colombia, 1996Photo courtesy of International Labor Organization

Gold

Children as young as six work in hazardous conditions in gold-mining regions of Peru

U.S. gold imports in 2002: $131 million from Peru

Tourism, WaiterPhoto courtesy of David Parker

Child Laborers Rescued from Benin and Returned Home to Nigeria in 2003

Photo: Erick-ChristianAhounou/AP

World Trade Is Increasing

310

30

14

82

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

1950-59 1960-69 1970-79 1980-89 1990-98

More regional trade agreements came into force in the 1990s than ever before

Source: World Development Report 1999

Global Production Systems Reorganize the Labor Market

Communications Technology

Transportation

Global Investment and Trade

Transnational Corporations Are Multinational Employers

Intel Manufacturing - 2002

Wafer Fabrication

Systems Manufacturing

Board Manufacturing

Assembly and Testing

U.S. Malaysia

Philippines

China

Costa Rica

Ireland

Israel

U.S. Malaysia

United StatesBrazil

CanadaMexico

AustraliaHong Kong SAR

IsraelJapanKorea

New ZealandSingapore

TaiwanAustria

BelgiumDenmark

FinlandFrance

Frmr W.GermanyGermany

IrelandItaly

LuxembourgNetherlands

NorwaySpain

SwedenSwitzerland

United Kingdom

Nations’ Wages and Working

Conditions Vary Widely

0 50 100 150 US Wage = 100

Hourly compensation for production workers in manufacturing (U.S. dollars, 2002)

International Children’s Rights: ILO Convention 138:

Minimum employment age of 15 years old (allows 14 in some cases)

ILO Convention 182:

Prohibition of “worst forms” of child labor

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child:

Protection from economic exploitation Protection from hazardous workAccess to health care Right to education

International Core Labor Standards

Rights to:

• A free choice to join a union and collective bargaining

• Reject all forms of forced or compulsory labor

• Work free from discrimination

• Reject child labor-ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles

and Rights at Work, adopted June,1998

Why Does Child Labor Continue?

• Poverty & unemployment• Lack of access to education• Weak laws or law enforcement• Repression of worker rights• National debt burdens• Intense global competition

How does trade affect these factors?

Competition Increasing for All Workers

“Competition among firms . . . becomes competition among labor located in different countries.”

-Rubens Ricupero, Secretary General,UN Conference on Trade & Development

What do current trends in globalization mean for workers?

WTO

•Job Creation•Poverty Reduction•Lower Prices•Promote Global Peace

AFL-CIO

•“Race to the Bottom”•Unemployment•Increased Income Inequality•Political and Economic Instability

Trade and Globalization:Contradictory Effects on Child Labor

GLOBAL COMPETITION

TRADE RULES

WORLD BANK AND IMF

Global Trade Offers New Promise and Opportunities

I wanted this job because I saw the WTO as a way of lifting living standards for working people everywhere. . . Prosperity and peace – that to me is what the multilateral trading system can bring about.”

Mike MooreDirector-General WTO 1999

Of each dollar generated in the Global Economy . . .

High-income countries receive

80 cents

Low-income countries receive

3 centsSource: Oxfam, Rigged Rules and Double Standards (2003), 67

1990s Human Development Crisis: Standards Deteriorating in Many Countries

54

37

21

14 12

21

0

20

40

60

Economicgrowth

Incomepoverty

Hunger Childmortality

Primaryenrolment

HDI

num

ber o

f cou

ntrie

s de

terio

ratin

g in

:

HDI = “Human Development Index”

Source: Human Development Index, 2003, UNDP http://hdr.undp.org/hdr4co/presentations/7

“Obstacles to economic progress”2003 UN Human Development Report:

• Geographic factors (location, climate, natural disasters)

• Debt burdens

• Conflict and violence

• Unfair trade rules

Source: UNDP, http://hdr.undp.org/hdr4co/presentations/21

Poor Countries Depend on Single Exports The example of the “Coffee Crisis”

• In four African countries, coffee accounts for over 30% of export revenues—in Burundi the figure is 79%

• In Central American countries, up to 10% of people directly depend on coffee for their livelihood.

And Suffer When Commodity Prices Decline

$0.00

$0.20

$0.40

$0.60

$0.80

$1.00

$1.20

$1.40

1980 1990 2000 2001

Coffee price/lb

• World market prices paid to coffee growers hit 100-year lows in 2001

Export “Dumping” Depresses Prices

2002 Exports from U.S.-based Companies

Price compared to cost of production

Wheat 43% below costSoybeans 25% below cost

Corn 13% below costCotton 61% below costRice 35% below cost

International Core Labor Standards

Rights to:

• A free choice to join a union and collective bargaining

• Reject all forms of forced or compulsory labor

• Work free from discrimination

• Reject child labor-ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles

and Rights at Work, adopted June,1998

First U.S. Federal Child Labor Law

Keating-Owen Act (1916-1918)

Prohibited from crossing state lines:

• Goods made in factoriesemploying children under 14

• Products from mines employingchildren under 16

International Trade Organization

ITO• Proposed UN Agency after WWII

• Draft negotiated by 50 nations

• Set rules on trade, labor,investment, services

ITO• Failed ratification by

national legislatures in1948

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1946-1994

ITO• Temporary multilateral agreement on tariff reductions –> permanent after ITO failed

• No labor standards language, except for prohibition on prison labor

ITO

From ITO to GATT to the WTO

ITO

ITO1947: GATT temporary agreement among 23 ITO nations

1948: GATT becomes permanent

1948-1994: GATT grows to 135 nations

1986-1994: GATT members draft the WTO in “Uruguay Round” of trade talks

World Trade Organization

• 146 member countries• Collection of 20+ trade treaties• Since 1995, sets and enforces global trade

rules

“Its main function is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible.”

WTO Structure

MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE

GENERAL COUNCILDISPUTE RESOLUTION BODYTRADE POLICY REVIEW BODY

GOODS COUNCIL(GATT, AoA, etc.)

SERVICES COUNCIL(GATS)

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY COUNCIL(TRIPS)

Every 2 monthsMember Nation Ambassadors

Every 2 yearsMember Nation

Ministers of Trade, Finance, Ag., etc.

WTO on Labor Standards

Resolved: “that the ILO should remain the

supranational agency charged with developing and monitoring core labor standards.”

-WTO Ministerial Meeting, 1996

PROPOSAL:Pass national law banning imports of goods made with child labor.

PROBLEM:Under WTO rules, such a law could be challenged by other WTO members as an unfair barrier to trade.

Rules for Today’s Global Economy

Labor Standards

ILO / UNTrade Rules

WTOOECD

Regional & Bialateral Trade

Agreements?

Campaigns for Global Labor Standards

Demanding a Social Clause in Trade Rules

Working Toward Ratification and Enforcement of Convention 182

Millennium Development Goals

Campaigns to Publicize Goals

Campaigns to Increase Aid & Make Trade Fair

Calls for Fair Trade Rules

AN INTERFAITH STATEMENT ONINTERNATIONAL TRADE AND INVESTMENT

Interfaith Working Group on Trade and Investment 05/16/01

PRINCIPLES:1. International trade and investment systems

should respect and support the dignity of the human person, the integrity of creation, and our common humanity.

U.S. Trade Representative(USTR)

Robert ZoellickAppointed USTR in 2001

U.S. Trade Act of 2002

New language directs USTR to:

• “promote respect” for childrens’ rights and core labor standards

• ensure existing laws are not weakened

• promote ratification of Convention 182on the worst forms of child labor

U.S.-Chile & U.S.-Singapore Agreements

*First agreements negotiated under Trade Act of 2002

Required reports to Congress from USTR documented Chile and Singapore’s child

labor laws and participation in ILO projects.

Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)

Since 1984, U.S. offers trade benefits to developing countries who “take steps to afford internationally recognized worker rights,”including:

• Freedom of association

• Right to organize and bargain collectively

• Freedom from coerced labor

• Minimum age for employment of children

• Minimum wage, hours of work, safety, etc.

GSP Petitions

• Can be filed by any “interested party”

• Nearly 100 filed to date • 73% filed by unions or

AFL-CIO

When used to demand change, respect for rights “appears to have

improved” 58% of time

GSP & Child Labor

In 1996, U.S. revoked Pakistan’s GSP benefits for:

• Surgical instruments

• Sporting goods

• Hand-knotted carpets

NAFTA Labor “Side Agreement”

North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC)

• Commits NAFTA countries to enforcingdomestic labor laws

• 20 complaints filed to date have resulted inconsultations, joint programs, and publicseminars

NAFTA & Child Labor

• Florida vegetable growers charged child labor in Mexico created “unfair competition”

• Case was dropped before completion

One NAALC child labor case filed in 1998:

Boy in a lettuce field, Hidalgo, central MexicoPhoto by Jack Kurtz

U.S.-Cambodia Textile Agreement

Since 1999, links U.S. textile import quotas to improvements in Cambodian labor standards. Garment Workers at a Union Meeting, Cambodia

Photo: Solidarity Center

U.S. agrees to import more from Cambodia if ILO reports show improvements in garment factories.

U.S.-Cambodia Agreement & Child Labor

October, 2003, ILO report documented:

• “only two minor incidents” of child labor (14-year-oldsrecruited to work)

• 13 out of 61factories “did notadequately verifythe age of workers”

Wearvel Textile Co., CambodiaPhoto: ILO, http://www.ilo.org/public/english/region/asro/bangkok/ability/pic11.htm

U.S.-Jordan Free Trade Agreement

Since 2000, requires U.S. and Jordan to:

• Enforce domesticlabor laws

• AND recognize coreinternational laborstandards Textile weaving workshop, Jordan

Photo courtesy of the: ILO,

Labor provisions appear in body of text (not as side agreement).

U.S.-Jordan Agreement & Child Labor

Since signing 2002 trade agreement:

• U.S. & Jordan pledgednot to use tradeagreement to enforcelabor standards

• U.S. funded ILO childlabor project in Jordan Queen Rania of Jordan Visits the ILO, 2002

Photo courtesy of ILO

U.S.-Chile & U.S.-Singapore Agreements

Since 2003, commit countries to:

• “promote respect” forinternational corelabor standards

• enforce existingdomestic labor laws US & Chile’s Chief Negotiators

Conclude Agreement, 2003Photo: Chile-U.S. Free Trade Agreement Research Photos

“In both the Chile and Singapore agreements, only one single labor rights obligation—the obligation for a country to enforce its own labor laws—is actually enforceable through dispute settlement.”

“Under the Chile and Singapore FTAs, a country that is challenged for failing to enforce its existing labor laws could simply weaken or eliminate those laws to avoid dispute settlement.”

-USTR Labor Advisory Committee on Chile and Singapore Agreements

Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)

Scheduled for completion in 2005:

• includes 34 countries inAmericas

• draft labor standardschapter may or may notbe included

Using Customs to Combat Child Labor

1930: U.S. Tariff Act prohibits importing goods made with prison or indentured labor

1997: Congress specifies the Act should include “forced or indentured” child labor

1999: Executive Order directs government agencies to ensure they purchase no goods made with “forced or indentured”child labor

Fair Trade Products

• Products certified based on labor and minimum price criteria

• Certified coffee, tea, chocolate, and bananas available so far

RUGMARK

• Label granted only to licensed, inspected rug makers

• Licensing fees fund education and rehabilitation programs

Solidarity Across Borders

2001 Campaign to support Mexican garment workers

2002 Campaign to support Ecuador’s banana workers

Hauling bananas from the fields to the packing plant, Ecuador

Photo courtesy of David Parker.

Harvesting Bananas, Ecuador

Photo courtesy of David Parker.

Low Wages Contribute to Poverty for Ecuador’s Banana Workers

$250

$500

$200 $175$135

$56

$0$50

$100$150$200$250$300$350$400$450$500

Colombia

Panam

aCos

ta Rica

Hondu

rasGua

temala

Ecuad

or

Average Monthly Pay in Banana Exporting Nations

90% 90%

7%

40%

1%0%

10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

Colombia

Panam

a

Costa

Rica

Hondura

s

Ecuad

or

Unionization Levels in Banana Exporting Countries

Ecuador’s Banana Workers Lack Union Protections

During 20 Years of Structural Adjustment,

As Wages Fell, State Health and Education Spending Declined in Ecuador

Household average income1980: $2001993: $80

Health and education spending1980: 38% of the national budget 2000: 11% of the national budget

Ecuador’s Child Labor Laws Lack Adequate Enforcement

Ecuador’s Law Establishes:• Minimum working age of 15• No hazardous work for children under 18

But according to a U.S. State Department Report on Ecuador, in 2002:

“The Ministry of Labor and the Minors’ Tribunals fail to enforce child labor laws, and child labor is prevalent.”

Ecuador’s Exports Boosted by Low Production Costs

Costs of banana production (1997)

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800

Martinique

Do minica

Grenada

Ivo ry Co as t

S t Luc ia

S t. Vincent

J amaica

Co lo mbia

Co s ta Rica

Ecuado r

D o llars p er t o n

Ecuador is Leading Banana Exporter

0

10

20

30

40

50

Ecua

dor

Costa

Rica

Philip

pine

sCo

lombia

Guat

emala

Pana

ma

Cote

d'Iv

oire

Cam

eroo

nHo

ndur

asW

indwa

rd Is

lands

Othe

r

Percent share of world banana exports, 2000

Source: FAO statistics, unctad.org/infocomm

U.S. & EU Import Most Bananas

0

10

20

30

40

50

U.S.

A. EU

Japa

n

China

Russ

iaCa

nada

Arge

ntina

Polan

d

Chile

Rest

of W

orld

Percent share of world banana imports, 2000

Source: FAO statistics, unctad.org/infocomm

International Banana Markets: Real Wholesale Prices Declining

Banana market prices, 1960-2000 (cents per pound)

Source: UNCTAD Commodity Price Bulletin, unctad.org/inforcomm

International Banana Markets: Low Retail Prices

Source: FAO statistics, unctad.org/inforcomm

Banana retail prices, 1990-2000 (dollars per kg)

International Banana Markets: Five Companies Control Trade

0

10

20

30

40

50Ch

iqui

ta

Dole

Del M

onte

Fyffe

s

Nobo

a

Percent share of world banana trade, 1999

International Banana Markets: Workers Reap Few Profits

Average distribution of profits from an Ecuadorean banana exported to the EU

Plantation workers: 1% Plantation

owner: 3%

Exporting company

10%Shipping15%

EU duty and licenses

23%

Supermarket40%

Importing/ ripening

8%

Actually, during the nineties the international banana market has been extremely influenced by the developments of the EU Banana Regime and the following dispute and agreement at the WTO, which have filled the market with uncertainties and limited the actions of the different banana market operators.

-UNCTAD

International Banana Markets: Small Countries Depend on Bananas

0

10

20

30

40

50

St. L

ucia

Cost

a Ri

ca

Ecua

dor

Percent of 2000 export income dependent on bananas

Source: UNCTAD, unctad.org/inforcomm

Banana Trade, 1975-1993

U.S. banana imports• No tariffs or quotas• Most imports from Central, Latin America

UK &European banana imports• Tariff & quota preferences to former Caribbean & African colonies in many countries (UK, France, Italy, etc.)• Some imports from Latin America (e.g., to Germany)

“Dollar”bananas

1993: EU “Banana Regime”

• EU creates complex tariff & quota system for bananas

• Continues preferences to former Caribbean & African colonies

• Quotas limit imports from Latin American countries

Challenge to EU Trade at WTO

EU “BananaRegime”

1994: U.S. & Ecuador argue EU trade discriminates against Latin America and U.S. companies, and that EU must open its markets to more “dollar” bananas.

“Dollar”bananas ?

WTO Rulings on Banana Trade

1997: WTO rules in favor of U.S. / EcuadorEU accepts slightly more Latin American

bananas & raises Ecuador’s quota

1999: WTO authorizes U.S. / Ecuador to impose sanctions against EU

EU agrees to lift all banana quotas by 2006

Impact of WTO Rulings

Since 2001, Ecuador’s banana exports to EU have increased, while Caribbean exports are on the decline.

“Dollar”bananas

International Banana Charter

Steps toward “sustainable banana economy”:

• Social & environmental clause in WTO• Collective bargaining• Corporate codes of conduct• Fair trade• Reform of EU “Banana Regime”

1998 International Banana ConferenceIUF & EUROBAN

International Support for Ecuador’s Banana Workers

ResearchWhich stores sell Bonita?

Letter-Writing CampaignOver 4,000 Letters to Noboa1000 Letters to Costco

Congressional DelegationSpeaking TourBonita workers visit U.S. Cities

ProtestThousands Protest FTAA Meeting in Ecuador

Linking Labor Standards to Trade Benefits

Due to child labor and worker rights abuses, U.S. Trade Representative delayed trade benefits for Ecuador in 2002

In response, Ecuador’s government • raised the minimum employment age to 15• promised to

– Improve child labor law enforcement– Review labor laws– Investigate violence against workers

Fair Trade Bananas

• Fair wages and working conditions certified by Fair Trade groups

•Bananas grown in Ghana, Costa Rica, and Windward Islands

• So far, imported and sold in UK and parts of Europe