Legislation implementing free-trade pacts with Chile and Singapore, minus workers' rights, passed the House easily Thursday as the GOP-run Congress raced towards recess.

The Bush administration pushed the free trade bills, and drew support from Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., the top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee, which approves trade legislation. Labor lobbied strongly against the two bills.

AFL-CIO President John Sweeney called them "the blueprint for a global economy without meaningful workers' rights, (or) job and wage security." He said Congress should "challenge bad trade policies that...destroy good manufacturing jobs," instead.

But the House passed both by unexpectedly wide margins. Chile won by 270-156, while Singapore passed 272-155. The Senate Finance Committee also approved both, on July 16 with the full Senate scheduled to consider them in the last week of July.

Meanwhile, on July 23, the House GOP sidetracked a Democratic move to get Bush officials to negotiate for labor rights, including collective bargaining rights, in future trade pacts.

The Chile treaty restricts textile imports, and sets rules for business importation of white-collar workers into the U.S. But Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., who opposed both pacts, said the rules are weak and will not prevent importation of those workers.

But both treaties still lift all tariffs and restrictions on other products from the two nations, endangering U.S. jobs. Teamsters President James Hoffa, in a letter to each lawmaker, warned that U.S. workers would lose jobs and rights should the treaties pass, and that we would remember next November.

"These agreements will only lead to the same deteriorating trade balances, lost jobs, trampled rights and inadequate economic development that NAFTA created," he said in the letter.

Rep. Sander Levin, D-Mich., tried to prevent the Bush administration from spending money to negotiate a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) treaty that does not ban child labor, forced labor, employment discrimination and "that does not...guarantee the right to associate and bargain collectively." Levin said even before FTAA comes up, the administration is negotiating a new Central American free trade treaty, CAFTA, without labor protections.

"Expanded trade and further integration of our markets cannot be achieved based on the suppression of workers," Levin said. He cited cases in El Salvador, Nicaragua and Guatemala.

The ruling House GOP refused to allow a vote on Levin's amendment, arguing congressional rules outlawed it.

The Chile trade treaty bill limits the number of Chilean workers firms import into the U.S. for training via "L-1" visas to 1,400, plus family members. It also limits visas to two years, plus extensions from the Homeland Security Department.

And it orders firms to pay the imported managerial workers either "at least the actual wage level" the company pays to other workers "with similar experience and qualifications...or the prevailing wage" for that occupation, "whichever is greater." The Chile trade pact bill also bans importing foreign workers when there is a strike or a lockout.

That did not satisfy 27 dissenting GOPers, who said the administration is using trade agreements to take away jobs from U.S. white-collar workers, by permitting the worker imports.

Firms now import white collar workers from overseas at lower wages, train them here--and can keep them here for up to seven years. The workers then return overseas, taking jobs with them. Wash-Tech, a Seattle-based Communications Workers local, has publicized the white-collar job exodus. It shows firms use "intra-company transfers" on L-1 visas to bring in foreign managers, below cost, train them, and send them--and jobs--abroad.

For more information

See the special Workday Minnesota section, Understanding the Global Economy