China Moving BRI into Latin American Countries : Chinese FTAs and Labor Implications

In May 2017, Xi Jinping called the Latin American countries [LAC] “a natural extension of the Maritime Silk Road…” Recent years of China's increasing trade and investment has affected industries and jobs, and thus has also given rise to labor issues, as Chinese firms tend to hire Chinese nationals rather than local workers, especially in management and highly skilled roles. “Rules of the road” governing trade and FDI between China and LAC, though being negotiated, are not formalized in a comprehensive FTA with labor protection provisions, and currently there are only FTAs with several LAC countries.This paper will discuss and analyze the significance in selected Latin American countries of China moving its BRI into LAC and the implications on labor standards as they may interact with international obligations and current domestic labor laws. It will also address the question whether a regional, multi-lateral FTA with its economic advantages and uniform labor obligations may be beneficial to the growing relationships being negotiated? Issues of whether a China-LAC FTA with labor provisions would usefully enhance labor protections by providing an additional uniform monitoring and enforcement regime to the relationship, and how likely it will occur, is discussed below.Following the Introduction; Part II describes “Latin America” and its FDI and trade activities, focusing on the countries with significant trading experience with China or are members of the major trading blocs; Part III sets forth the current international and domestic labor obligations in selected countries in the LAC; Part IV provides comparative analyses and discusses a possible regional, multi-lateral FTA with China; and Part V concludes