Not That Assertive: The EU’s Take on Enforcement of Labour Obligations in Its Free Trade Agreement with South Korea

IF 1.8 3区社会学 Q2 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

European Journal of International Law Pub Date : 2022-07-21 DOI:10.1093/ejil/chac037

Aleydis Nissen

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引用次数: 1

Abstract

In 2011, the European Union (EU) concluded the first of a ‘new generation’ of free trade agreements that contained a separate chapter with obligations relating to ‘trade and sustainable development’ (TSD) issues. This was the Free Trade Agreement with the Republic of Korea. The EU formally initiated its first TSD complaint, under this agreement, in 2018. This labour complaint came after a non-paper of the European Commission promised ‘more assertive’ use of the soft dispute mechanism for TSD obligations, following years of pressure by various stakeholders. This non-paper remained apologetic about hard sanctions but promised a review in 2023. This article aims to study to what extent the EU delivered upon its promise to use the soft dispute mechanism more assertively during its first TSD proceedings. It finds that the EU was not prepared to act assertively in relation to certain issues (collective bargaining and the right to strike) and certain workers (in the public and export sectors) during the proceedings before the ad hoc Panel of Experts, which ended in 2021. It argues, in particular, that the EU missed a major opportunity to use its bargaining leverage vis-à-vis Korean consumer conglomerates.

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不那么自信:欧盟在与韩国的自由贸易协定中对劳工义务的执行

2011年，欧盟(EU)缔结了“新一代”自由贸易协定中的第一个，其中包含了与“贸易和可持续发展”(TSD)问题有关的义务的单独章节。这就是与大韩民国的自由贸易协定。欧盟于2018年根据该协议正式发起了第一起TSD投诉。在各方利益相关者多年的压力下，欧盟委员会的一份非文件承诺“更坚定地”使用软争端机制来履行TSD义务，随后出现了这一劳工投诉。这份非文件对严厉制裁表示歉意，但承诺在2023年进行审查。本文旨在研究欧盟在其第一次TSD程序中更积极地使用软争端机制的承诺在多大程度上得到了兑现。它发现，在2021年结束的特设专家小组的程序中，欧盟没有准备好在某些问题(集体谈判和罢工权)和某些工人(公共和出口部门)方面采取果断行动。它特别指出，欧盟错过了一个利用其对-à-vis韩国消费集团讨价还价的重要机会。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

European Journal of International Law Multiple-

CiteScore

2.40

自引率

8.30%

发文量

期刊介绍： The European Journal of International Law is firmly established as one of the world"s leading journals in its field. With its distinctive combination of theoretical and practical approaches to the issues of international law, the journal offers readers a unique opportunity to stay in touch with the latest developments in this rapidly evolving area. Each issue of the EJIL provides a forum for the exploration of the conceptual and theoretical dimensions of international law as well as for up-to-date analysis of topical issues. Additionally, it is the only journal to provide systematic coverage of the relationship between international law and the law of the European Union and its Member States.