US: Congress Must Protect Women Workers in Trade Law
15 Nov 2006 18:33:11 GMT
Source: Human Rights Watch
(Washington, DC, November 15, 2006) – The US Congress looks likely to renew trade legislation that turns a blind eye to the rights of women workers in developing countries, Human Rights Watch said today.
US lawmakers are due to vote this "lame duck" session on extending the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), which allows thousands of products from developing countries to enter the United States duty free. Since 1984, GSP has tied trade benefits to respect for labor rights by requiring beneficiary countries to take "steps to afford internationally recognized worker rights." However, it excludes protection from employment and workplace discrimination from the list of rights.
"This outrageous exclusion in effect says rights for women workers have no place under US trade law," said Carol Pier, senior researcher on trade and labor rights at Human Rights Watch. "In many countries, women produce most of the goods exported to the United States under the preferences system. Yet they often suffer daily discrimination, including sexual harassment and forced pregnancy testing. It's a major problem that Congress should address."
