Mapping efforts to protect worker rights in supply chains

Alexander Jaax and Elisabeth van Lieshout

No 291, OECD Trade Policy Papers from OECD Publishing

Abstract: With modern production processes involving multiple border crossings, questions about connections between economic integration and labour rights arise. It is notably the case that products consumed in countries with high labour standards may still incorporate labour inputs from countries with more challenging practices. This paper leverages input-output techniques to map diverse patterns of worker rights along supply chains, considering all labour embodied in OECD countries’ final demand for a good or service. Depending on the indicator used to capture worker rights, different supply chain stages and sectors emerge as embodying labour practices that may be of concern to OECD consumers. The paper compares three instruments designed to safeguard worker rights in the context of international trade - labour provisions in preferential trade agreements, voluntary sustainability initiatives, and supply chain sustainability laws - and documents their coverage of specific supply chains.

Keywords: Global supply chains; Labour standards; Responsible business conduct; Trade policy; Working conditions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C67 F13 F23 J81 J83 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-02-26
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:oec:traaab:291-en

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