Bulletin of Comparative Labour Relations - 52

 THE GLOBALISATION OF LABOUR STANDARDS

THE SOFT LAW TRACK

Global Compact

ILO Principles

NAFTA Agreement

OECD Guidelines

Roger Blanpain

Michele Colucci

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Notes on Contributors. 8

List of Abbreviations. 9

CHAPTER I.  GENERAL INTRODUCTION.. 10

§ 1.  A Paradox: Globalisation of the Economy versus Re-Nationalisation of Labour Law.. 10

I.  Trade and FDI.  Capital flow.. 10

II.  The knowledge society and ICT. 10

III.  Technology. 11

IV.  Employment 12

V.  Multinational Enterprises. 13

VI.  Winners and losers. 13

VII.  Impact of globalisation.  The Re-Nationalisation of Labour Law.. 13

§ 2.  Global Answer: Labour Standards. 14

I.  Core Labour Standards. 14

II.  Consensus. 15

§ 3.  The Globalisation of Soft Law: Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. 16

I.  Public initiatives. 16

II.  Private initiatives. 17

§ 4  Objectives of this book. 17

Acknowledgements. 18

CHAPTER II.  PUBLIC INITIATIVES: GUIDELINES FOR MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES.. 19

§ 1.  Who is Who?  The Public Actors. 19

I.  The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development 19

II.  The International Labour Organisation. 20

III.  The North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC) 22

A.  Institutional Framework. 22

1.  The Commission for Labor Cooperation. 23

a.  The Council of Ministers. 23

b.  The Secretariat 23

2.  National Institutions. 23

a.  The National Administrative Offices. 23

b.  National Advisory and Governmental Committees. 24

3.  Evaluation Committees of Experts and Arbitral Panels. 24

B.  Legal Aspects. 24

IV.  The Global Compact 25

§ 2.  Genesis of the Public Initiatives. 25

I.  Looking for a balance. 26

A.  The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. 26

B.  The ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles. 26

C.  The North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC) 27

D.  The Global Compact 27

II.  Context and Drafting of the Instruments. 27

A.  The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. 27

B. The ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles. 30

C.  The North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC) 32

D.  The Global Compact 32

§ 3.  Addressees and Personal Scope. 34

I.  Addressees. 34

A.  Multinational Enterprises. 34

B.  National Enterprises, SMEs included. 35

C.  Governments. 35

D.  Employers’ Organisations and Trade Unions. 36

II.  Territorial Scope. 37

§ 4.  Content:  Labour Standards. 37

I.  In General: A Comparative Overview.. 37

II.  Recommended Labour Standards in Detail 39

A.  Child Labour 39

B.  Forced and Compulsory Labour 39

C.  No Discrimination. 40

D.  Freedom of Association. 41

E.  Collective Bargaining. 42

F.  The Right to Strike. 43

G.  Employment Promotion. 43

H.  Security of Employment 44

I.  Minimum Standards. 45

J.  Training. 46

K.  Health and Safety. 46

L.  Information. 47

M.  Consultation. 48

N.  Notice of Change.  Mitigation of Adverse Effects. 48

O.  No Threat to Transfer 49

P.  Access to Real Decision Makers. 49

Q.  Migrant Workers. 49

§ 5.  Binding effect 50

I.    Voluntary Instruments. 50

II.  Legally Binding Instrument 50

§ 6.  The Implementation of the Public Instruments. 52

I.  Reporting: the ILO.. 52

A.  Institutional Context 52

B.  The Seventh Survey (1996 -1999) 53

1.  Response Rate. 53

2.  Observations Regarding the Questionnaire. 53

3. FDI Flows. 54

a.  MNEs and FDI: Increase. 54

b.  Mergers and Acquisitions: Growth. 55

c.  Africa. 55

d.  Asia. 56

e.  Americas. 56

f.  Europe. 57

g.  Conclusions regarding FDI 57

4.  The Principles.  Results of the Survey. 57

a.  Background, Aim and General Policies. 57

b. Employment Promotion. 59

c.  Equality of Opportunity and Treatment 60

d.  Security of Employment 60

e.  Training. 60

f.  Wages, Benefits and Conditions of Work. 61

g.  Safety and Health. 62

h. Industrial Relations. 62

i. Promotion of the Observance of the Declaration. 64

j. The Tripartite Declaration and Various Economic Zones and Industrial Sectors. 65

k. Disputes concerning Interpretation of the Provisions of the Declaration. 66

II.  Problem solving: The National Contact Points (OECD) 66

A.  National Contact Points. 67

B.  Structures. 68

C. CIME.. 68

D.  Complaints. 69

E.  Coordination. 70

F.  Cases: 2000 - 2003. 70

III.            Clarifications (OECD and ILO) 71

A.  The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. 71

1.  Requests for clarification: 1977 - 2000. 72

2.  Clarifications (OECD) 74

a.  The (non-)definition of a MNE.. 74

b.  Responsibilities of the Various Entities of a MNE.  Responsibility of the Mother Company. 74

c.  Freedom of Association. 75

d.  Providing Information for a True and Fair View of the Enterprise. 75

e.  Effective Communication. 76

f.  Reasonable Notice of Change in Operations. 76

g.  Transfer of a Unit or of Employees. Unfair Influence during Negotiations. 77

h.  Conduct of Negotiations. Access to Real Decision Makers. 77

i.  Future Production and Investment Matters: 78

3.  2000 and Beyond. 78

B.  ILO Declaration. 79

1.  Procedure. 80

2.  Interpretations of the Receivability Requirements of the Procedure. 81

3.  Clarifications. 82

C. NAALC.. 83

1.  Cooperative Activities of the NAOs. 83

2.  Public Communications. 84

a. Communications submitted to the Canadian National Administrative Office (NAO) 92

b. Communications submitted to the Mexican National Administrative Office (NAO) 93

c.  Communications submitted to the United States National Administrative Office (NAO) 98

d.  Evaluation of the Submission Process. 106

1) Summers & Verge. 106

a) Understand and Report 106

b) Ambiguity – False expectations. 107

c) No Correction. 107

d) Allegations of Delay, Lack of Impartiality and Lack of Fair and Transparent Procedures. 108

e) Conventions of the ILO.. 108

f) Number of Cases: Futile Practice. 109

g) Evaluation Committees of Experts and Arbitral Panels. 109

h) Technical Labor Standards. 109

i.  Changes in the Law.. 110

2) Medina. 110

a) Weakness: Unilateral Information. 110

b) Mexican Labor Legislation Enforced. 111

c) Submissions Should Not Have Been Accepted. 111

d) Perverse Effects. 111

IV.  Corporate Action:  The Global Compact 112

A.  Engagement Opportunities. 112

B.  Appropriate Examples. 112

SUMMARY:  A GLOBAL ANSWER : SOFT LAW... 116

A.  Global Economy.  Multinationals thriving. 116

B.  Labour law: national 116

C.  A Global Answer: Soft Law.. 117

D.  First Steps. 117

E.  Building Further 117

F.  Four Public Instruments. 117

G.  Business and labour 117

H.  General and Specific Codes of Conduct 117

I.  Respect National Law and Practice. 118

J.  Labour Standards. 118

1.  Core Labour Standards. 118

2.  Other Labour Standards. 118

K.  Multinational and National Enterprises.  Worldwide. 119

L.  Voluntary.  Moral 119

M.  The Four Tracks. 119

N.  Links between the Tracks. 120

O.  Same Meaning?. 120

P.  Implementation. 121

Q.  Impact 121

R.  Representative Reporting. 122

S.  Do MNEs live up to the labour standards?. 122

T.  Problem solving. 122

U.  Clarifications. 123

V.  Corporate Action.  Global compact 123

CONCLUDING.. 124

ANNEXES.. 125

I.  THE GLOBAL COMPACT (1999) 125

II. ILO: Tripartite Declaration of Principles Concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy. 126

III. NAFTA.  Labor Principles (1993) 136

IV.  OECD GUIDELINES FOR MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES (1977 – 2000) 138

V. Central American Free Trade Agreement 154

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 161

INDEX.. 162

Notes on Contributors

Roger Blanpain is Professor of Labour Law at the Universities of Leuven and Limburg (Belgium) and Tilburg (The Netherlands).  He is a Past President of the International Industrial Relations Association and an Honorary President of the International Society for Labour and Social Security Law.  He is a member of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium. 

Michele Colucci is researcher at the University of Salerno (Italy) and agent of the Legal Service of the European Commission