International Labor Standards and International Trade

Stephen Golub

No 1997/037, IMF Working Papers from International Monetary Fund

Abstract: This paper reviews controversies regarding linkage of international trade and labor standards. Pressures for international harmonization of labor standards arise in the context of increased trade between countries with large disparities in wages, and also reflect the history of labor standards. A critical distinction is made between standards related to fundamental human rights and those related to employment conditions. The main conclusion is that trade sanctions to enforce labor standards should not be an option, but that international agreements on core labor standards, with voluntary compliance, may, apart from being worthwhile on ethical grounds, defuse calls for protection.

Keywords: WP; trade sanction; North-South trade; child labor; OECD list; trade pattern; labor standards; social clause; World Trade Organization; labor standard variable; country standard; import penetration; growth prospect; core labor standards; productivity level; a number of country; Wages; Labor costs; Labor markets; Minimum wages; East Asia; North America (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 37
Date: 1997-04-01
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

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