We Can Win Fair Trade
From the AFL-CIO
The AFL-CIO and our allies are sticking together for improvements to NAFTA. The renegotiation presents an opportunity for President Trump to earn bipartisan support for one of his signature campaign promises.
This is an expression of our labor movement’s political independence: We will work with anyone who supports good jobs, worker freedom and raising pay. The right deal must:
- Cut back or kill the special corporate court, known as the Investor-State Dispute Settlement, because it subsidizes outsourcing and undermines our democracy.
- Include clear and strong labor rules to end “protection contracts” that keep pay low in Mexico and also add safeguards so workers aren’t intimidated, hurt or killed for trying to form strong, independent unions.
- Prevent outsourcing, level the playing field and ensure that high U.S. standards are not watered down to the lowest common denominator.
$4.92 to $4.60 per day: That’s how much the corporate-written policies in NAFTA have pushed down the minimum wage in Mexico, adjusted for inflation and in U.S. dollars, since the deal went into effect nearly 25 years ago. Corporations that drive down wages in Mexico, drive down U.S. wages, too.
America’s union movement is building a powerful coalition of allies to win a new era of trade that lifts pay and strengthens our communities. We will hold the president and all politicians accountable to that standard.
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