Free Trade Agreements: U.S. Partners Are Addressing Labor Commitments, but More Monitoring and Enforcement Are Needed
Highlights
What GAO Found
Partner countries of free trade agreements (FTA) that GAO selected—the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) and the FTAs with Colombia, Oman, and Peru—have taken steps to implement labor provisions and other initiatives to strengthen labor rights. For example, U.S. and foreign officials said that El Salvador and Guatemala—both partners to CAFTA-DR—as well as Colombia, Oman, and Peru have acted to change labor laws, and Colombia and Guatemala have acted to address violence against union members. Since 2001, U.S. agencies have provided $275 million in labor-related technical assistance and capacity-building activities for FTA partners, including $222 million for the four FTAs GAO reviewed. However, U.S. agencies reported, and GAO found, persistent challenges to labor rights, such as limited enforcement capacity, the use of subcontracting to avoid direct employment, and, in Colombia and Guatemala, violence against union leaders.
Since 2008, the Department of Labor (DOL) has accepted five formal complaints—known as submissions—about possible violations of FTA labor provisions and has resolved one, regarding Peru (see fig.). However, for each submission, DOL has exceeded by an average of almost 9 months its 6-month time frame for investigating FTA-related labor submissions and issuing public reports, showing the time frame to be unrealistic. Also, union representatives and other stakeholders GAO interviewed in partner countries often did not understand the submission process, possibly limiting the number of submissions filed. Further, stakeholders expressed concerns that delays in resolving the submissions, resulting in part from DOL's exceeding its review time frames, may have contributed to the persistence of conditions that affect workers and are allegedly inconsistent with the FTAs.
Five Labor Submissions Accepted by DOL Regarding Free Trade Agreements
In 2009, GAO found weaknesses in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) and DOL's monitoring and enforcement of FTA labor provisions. In the same year, the agencies pledged to adopt a more proactive, interagency approach. GAO's current review found that although the agencies have taken several steps since 2009 to strengthen their monitoring and enforcement of FTA labor provisions, they lack a strategic approach to systematically assess whether partner countries' conditions and practices are inconsistent with labor provisions in the FTAs. Despite some proactive steps, they generally rely on labor submissions to begin identifying, investigating, and initiating steps to address possible inconsistencies with FTA labor provisions. According to agency officials, resource limitations have prevented more proactive monitoring of all FTA labor provisions. As a result, USTR and DOL systematically monitor and enforce compliance with FTA labor provisions for only a few priority countries. USTR's annual report to Congress about trade agreement programs provides limited details of the results of the agencies' monitoring and enforcement of compliance with FTA labor provisions.
Why GAO Did This Study
The United States has signed 14 FTAs, liberalizing U.S. trade with 20 countries. These FTAs include provisions regarding fundamental labor rights in the partner countries. USTR and DOL, supported by State, are responsible for monitoring and assisting FTA partners' implementation of these provisions.
GAO was asked to assess the status of implementation of FTA labor provisions in partner countries. GAO examined (1) steps that selected partner countries have taken, and U.S. assistance they have received, to implement these provisions and other labor initiatives and the reported results of such steps; (2) submissions regarding possible violations of FTA labor provisions that DOL has accepted and any problems related to the submission process; and (3) the extent to which U.S. agencies monitor and enforce implementation of FTA labor provisions and report results to Congress. GAO selected CAFTA-DR and the FTAs with Colombia, Oman, and Peru as representative of the range of FTAs with labor provisions, among other reasons. GAO reviewed documentation related to each FTA and interviewed U.S., partner government, and other officials in five of the partner countries.
Recommendations
DOL should reevaluate its submission review time frame and better inform stakeholders about the submission process. USTR and DOL should establish a coordinated strategic approach to monitoring and enforcement labor provisions. USTR's annual report to Congress should include more information of USTR's and DOL's monitoring and enforcement efforts. The agencies generally agreed with the recommendations but disagreed with some findings, including the finding that they lack a systematic approach to monitor and enforce labor provisions in all FTAs. GAO stands by its findings.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Labor | To improve the capacity of the U.S. government to monitor and enforce FTA partners' compliance with mutually agreed FTA labor provisions, DOL should take steps to better inform stakeholders in FTA partner countries about its FTA labor submission process. |
In a correspondence dated January 16, 2015, DOL concurred with GAO's recommendation that DOL take steps to better inform stakeholders in FTA partner countries about its FTA labor submission process. DOL recognized the importance of informing stakeholders about all mechanisms and processes that help DOL monitor and enforce FTA labor obligations. Since then, the Monitoring and Enforcement of Trade Agreements Division (META) in DOL's Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) has instituted new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for monitoring FTA labor provisions and engaging with partner country governments and stakeholders. Specifically, the SOPs call for META staff to take monitoring trips to FTA partner countries in an effort to identify labor issues. As part of these trips, META staff are to reach out to various in-country stakeholders to explain the labor submissions process, including its procedures, outcomes, and timeline. META conducted monitoring trips to Nicaragua in April 2016 and to Jordan, Oman, and Morocco in September 2015. This recommendation is closed as implemented.
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| Department of Labor |
Priority Rec.
To improve the capacity of the U.S. government to monitor and enforce FTA partners' compliance with mutually agreed FTA labor provisions, USTR and DOL, in cooperation with State, should establish a coordinated strategic approach to monitoring and enforcing FTA labor provisions, to ensure that they systematically assess the consistency of priority FTA partner countries' laws, regulations, and practices with trade agreement labor provisions and address any identified concerns. |
In November 2014, GAO found weaknesses in the Department of Labor's (DOL) and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) monitoring and enforcement of FTA labor provisions. Specifically, GAO found that despite some proactive steps by DOL and USTR to strengthen their monitoring and enforcement of FTA labor provisions, they lacked a strategic approach to systematically assess whether partner countries' conditions and practices were consistent with labor provisions in the FTAs. GAO recommended that DOL and USTR, in cooperation with the Department of State, establish a coordinated strategic approach to monitoring and enforcing FTA labor provisions, to ensure that they systematically assess the consistency of priority FTA partner countries' laws, regulations, and practices with trade agreement labor provisions and address any identified concerns. In March 2017, the Monitoring and Enforcement of Trade Agreements Division (META) in DOL's Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) finalized Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for an intra-agency coordinated approach for monitoring and enforcing FTA labor provisions, as well as engaging with partner country governments and stakeholders. According to DOL, the SOP involves a renewed emphasis on monitoring trips to FTA partner countries to meet with government officials and in-country stakeholders to gather information on potential FTA violations. The SOPs contain five distinct monitoring and enforcement phases and outline the various steps each agency is to take. For example, in Phase 1 - Preliminary Monitoring Phase - the SOP directs the agencies to identify resources available, coordinate with other U.S. government counterparts, such as, USTR, State, USAID, and identify major stakeholders, among other steps. Furthermore, DOL and USTR provided information on steps they take to coordinate on monitoring trips, as well as how the agencies deal with any issues identified during the trips. For example, in April 2018, USTR/DOL traveled to Honduras for technical-level meetings to monitor and assess progress in implementing the U.S.-Honduras Labor Rights Monitoring and Action Plan (MAP) by the Government of Honduras (GOH). According to DOL documents, the trip allowed DOL, USTR, and State to assess the progress the GOH had made under the MAP and to plan out next steps. In addition, according to USTR and DOL, the Trade Policy Subcommittee (TPSC) on Labor Monitoring and Enforcement ("Subcommittee") continues to meet to coordinate on joint efforts to monitor partner countries compliance with FTA labor provisions. As of September 2018, the TPSC Subcommittee had met quarterly, with additional meetings planned for future dates. According to USTR, all participants - which include USTR, DOL, and State - discuss any monitoring and engagement conducted with partner governments, track events in partner governments related to labor, and conduct planning and coordination for monitoring trips. This recommendation is closed as implemented.
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| Other | To improve the capacity of the U.S. government to monitor and enforce FTA partners' compliance with mutually agreed FTA labor provisions, USTR and DOL, in cooperation with State, should establish a coordinated strategic approach to monitoring and enforcing FTA labor provisions, to ensure that they systematically assess the consistency of priority FTA partner countries' laws, regulations, and practices with trade agreement labor provisions and address any identified concerns. |
In November 2014, GAO found weaknesses in the Department of Labor's (DOL) and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) monitoring and enforcement of FTA labor provisions. Specifically, GAO found that despite some proactive steps by DOL and USTR to strengthen their monitoring and enforcement of FTA labor provisions, they lacked a strategic approach to systematically assess whether partner countries' conditions and practices were consistent with labor provisions in the FTAs. GAO recommended that DOL and USTR, in cooperation with the Department of State, establish a coordinated strategic approach to monitoring and enforcing FTA labor provisions, to ensure that they systematically assess the consistency of priority FTA partner countries' laws, regulations, and practices with trade agreement labor provisions and address any identified concerns. In March 2017, the Monitoring and Enforcement of Trade Agreements Division (META) in DOL's Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) finalized Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for an intra-agency coordinated approach for monitoring and enforcing FTA labor provisions, as well as engaging with partner country governments and stakeholders. According to DOL, the SOP involves a renewed emphasis on monitoring trips to FTA partner countries to meet with government officials and in-country stakeholders to gather information on potential FTA violations. The SOPs contain five distinct monitoring and enforcement phases and outline the various steps each agency is to take. For example, in Phase 1 - Preliminary Monitoring Phase - the SOP directs the agencies to identify resources available, coordinate with other U.S. government counterparts, such as, USTR, State, USAID, and identify major stakeholders, among other steps. Furthermore, DOL and USTR provided information on steps they take to coordinate on monitoring trips, as well as how the agencies deal with any issues identified during the trips. For example, in April 2018, USTR/DOL traveled to Honduras for technical-level meetings to monitor and assess progress in implementing the U.S.-Honduras Labor Rights Monitoring and Action Plan (MAP) by the Government of Honduras (GOH). According to DOL documents, the trip allowed DOL, USTR, and State to assess the progress the GOH had made under the MAP and to plan out next steps. In addition, according to USTR and DOL, the Trade Policy Subcommittee (TPSC) on Labor Monitoring and Enforcement ("Subcommittee") continues to meet to coordinate on joint efforts to monitor partner countries compliance with FTA labor provisions. As of September 2018, the TPSC Subcommittee had met quarterly, with additional meetings planned for future dates. According to USTR, all participants - which include USTR, DOL, and State - discuss any monitoring and engagement conducted with partner governments, track events in partner governments related to labor, and conduct planning and coordination for monitoring trips. This recommendation is closed as implemented.
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| Other | To improve the capacity of the U.S. government to monitor and enforce FTA partners' compliance with mutually agreed FTA labor provisions, USTR should ensure that the Annual Report of the President of the United States on the Trade Agreement Programs, which USTR provides each year to Congress, includes results of USTR's and DOL's efforts to proactively monitor partner countries' compliance with FTA labor provisions. |
In November 2014, GAO found weaknesses in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) reporting on monitoring and enforcement of labor provisions in Free Trade Agreements (FTA). Specifically, GAO found that while USTR met its yearly Congressional reporting requirements in its Annual Report of the President of the United States on the Trade Agreement Programs, the reporting provided limited details of the results of USTR's monitoring and enforcement of compliance with FTA labor provisions. GAO recommended that USTR's Annual Report of the President of the United States on the Trade Agreement Programs should include the results of USTR's and DOL's efforts to proactively monitor partner countries' compliance with FTA labor provisions. In a correspondence dated January 12, 2015, USTR concurred with GAO's recommendation and stated that it would continue to identify more effective ways to communicate with Congress with respect to the Administration's monitoring and enforcement efforts. Since January 2015, GAO has continually monitored USTR's efforts to provide additional information to Congress. In July 2019, GAO analyzed USTR's 2018 Annual Report and confirmed that the agency has increased the amount of information in their annual reports, as well as other public reporting, on the results of their monitoring and enforcement of FTA labor obligations. For example, USTR's 2018 Annual Report, its most recent, includes more in depth partner country-specific information on labor issues and future engagement, such as, 1) on-going efforts by Colombia in response to a January 2017 DOL report recommending improvements in the labor law inspection system and the application and collection of fines for employers who violate labor laws; stem abuses of subcontracting and collective pacts; and investigate and prosecute violence and threats, 2) specific details on efforts to address challenges for foreign workers in Jordan's garment factories, as well as DOL's engagement to strengthen labor rights, and 3) a more robust description of ongoing Labor engagement with Peru as a result of a March 2016 DOL report and proactive monitoring of labor conditions in-country. GAO concludes that the actions taken by USTR are sufficient to address GAO's recommendation.
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| Department of Labor | To improve the capacity of the U.S. government to monitor and enforce FTA partners' compliance with mutually agreed FTA labor provisions, DOL should reevaluate and adjust, if necessary, its FTA labor submission review time frame to ensure that it more accurately reflects the time required to thoroughly investigate and to report on most labor submissions. |
In a correspondence dated January 16, 2015, DOL concurred with GAO's recommendation to reevaluate and adjust, if necessary, its FTA labor submission review time frame to ensure that it more accurately reflects the time required to thoroughly investigate and to report on most labor submissions. In July 2016, DOL completed a review of its FTA labor submission time frame and determined that no changes were necessary. Instead, DOL developed and implemented Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for handling submissions. According to DOL, the new streamlined process for receiving and reviewing public submissions enables the agency to thoroughly investigate and report on labor submissions within the previously established timelines. Since then, the streamlined process for receiving and reviewing public submissions has resulted in the timely handling of six new submissions. This recommendation is closed as implemented.
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