New book announcement: NAFTA and Labor in North America by Norman Caulfield
In this cogent analysis, Norman Caulfield examines the effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement and the North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (the first international labor agreement linked to an international trade agreement). Caulfield shows how detrimental these policies are for workers and labor unions in the United States and Mexico. Warning of the waning political influence of trade unions and their disunity and divergence on crucial issues such as labor migration and workers' rights, Caulfield argues that traditional union strategies are ineffectual in the face of globalization. With insightful analysis, NAFTA and Labor in North America suggests that organized labor has been transformed from coalitions that once pressured management and the state for concessions to groups that now request that workers concede wages, pensions, and health benefits to remain competitive in the global marketplace.
More information at the University of Illinois Press website