(ATLANTA) - “As Long as Mexican Workers ‘Don’t Have Rights,’ Workers in America are ‘Under Threat.’” - With These Words Napoleón Gómez Urrutia, President of the Mexican Mine And Metalworkers’ Union Los Mineros, Recently Addressed the National AFL-CIO Executive Council at its Winter Meetings That Were Held in Atlanta in Late February.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka Welcomed Gómez, Who Received the AFL-CIO’s Meany-Kirkland Human Rights Award in 2011, But Could Not Attend the Ceremony Because of Criminal Charges Filed Against Him by the Mexican Government.

“Today, With the Support of the (United) Steelworkers, the AFL-CIO and the Global Labor Movement, Napoleon Has ‘Defeated the False Charges’ Against Him and he is Here With Us,” Trumka said. “This is a ‘Great Victory’ for Democratic Unionism and International Solidarity.”

In His Remarks, Gómez Argued Low Wages and Repression of Workers in Mexico Hurt U.S. Workers by Reducing Exports to Mexico and Creating Unfair Incentives to Relocate Plants From the United States.  “Workers in the U.S. and Mexico Have to Fight ‘Together,’ Even ‘Harder,’ for Justice and ‘Against’ Inequality,” he said.

While the Los Mineros Union Has Doubled the Real Wages of its Members in the Past Decade, Most Mexican Workers Face Repression When They Try to Join Democratic Unions. “That’s Why We Must ‘Work Together’ to ‘Stop’ the (Trans-Pacific Partnership) and ‘Demand Real Labor Reforms’ in Both of Our Countries” Gómez said.

National AFL-CIO Executive Council Calls For A New Track, Not Fast Track, On Trade Policy

National AFL-CIO News Now

(ATLANTA) - The National AFL-CIO Executive Council Called for Transparency and Broad Reform in the Nation’s Trade Negotiations and Policies - Especially Fast Track - in Action at the National Labor Organization’s Winter Meeting in Atlanta.

In its Statement, the Council said Current U.S. Trade Policies are Undermining the Interests of Working People and That When Decisions Involving Economic Policy are Made Behind Closed Doors … Those Decisions Tend to Advance the Policy Preferences of Political and Economic Elites, Not the Broad Interests of the Populace at Large … America’s Workers, Small Farmers, Small Businesses and Domestic Producers Have Paid the Price. 

The Statement Also Noted the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) and Other Trade Negotiations Currently Underway are Likely to Follow That Pattern.

Trade Negotiations, Trade Promotion Authority (Known as TPA or Fast Track) and Economic Policy are Inextricably Intertwined, Because Trade Agreements Include Provisions On Environmental Policy, Labor Rights, Foreign Investment, Food Safety, Anti-Trust Policy and More.  These Decisions, the Council said, Should Not be Made Behind Closed Doors - Away From the Eyes of the People and Their Elected Representatives.

Among Other Reforms, The Council says a New Trade Negotiating Authority Must: Ensure Congress Approves Trade Agreement Partners Before Negotiations Begin; Create Negotiating Objectives That are Specific to the Trade Partners Involved and Advance a Trade Model That Provides Balanced, Inclusive Benefits for All, Rather Than a Corporate-Rights Agenda; Ensure an Effective Check On the Executive Branch So it Cannot Unilaterally Determine Whether Congressional Trade Objectives Have Been Met After an Agreement Has Been Negotiated or Whether Agreements Should Qualify for Expedited Consideration; and Ensure Congress Has Effective Opportunities to Strip Expedited Consideration From Trade Deals That Fail to Meet Congressional Objectives or Fail to Incorporate Congressional and Public Participation.

In Order to Advance This Agenda, the AFL-CIO Has Committed itself to Working With a Broad Coalition of Allies to Defeat Fast Track Trade Authority - and Instead Develop More Democratic and Participatory Trade Negotiating Procedures That Lead to Fairer and More Balanced Trade Deals That Choose People and the Planet Over Profits.

Among Other Initiatives, the Council Announced the AFL-CIO is Committed to: Continuing to Educate Our Members - and All Workers - About the Negative Effects of Fast Track Trade Deals and That There is a Better Way; Demanding Greater Transparency and Inclusiveness in Creating U.S. International Economic Policies, Consistent With Democratic Principles; Expanding Our Fair Trade Coalition to Include Civil Rights Leaders, People of Faith, Small Business People, Seniors and Veterans; Ensuring U.S. Trade and Economic Policies Reflect the Progressive Reforms Needed to Make U.S. Producers and Their Employees More Competitive in the Global Marketplace; and Fight to Defeat Any Trade Agreement That Fails to Prioritize the Needs of Working Families and Advance Shared Prosperity in the Global Economy.

You Can Read the Full AFL-CIO Executive Council Statement Here.