The Council of Trade Unions said today that the announcement of negotiations for full inclusion of the USA in the P4 is a hugely significant trade development.

The Council of Trade Unions says that it appears as if union concerns have been taken on board in the NZ-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

The Council of Trade Unions is asking New Zealanders to consider the many benefits of buying kiwi made products and services.

"By buying local, kiwis are contributing to New Zealand in many ways - not only by putting money directly into local business and providing jobs, but also to public services such as health and education through the tax base," said Ross Wilson, Council of Trade Unions President.

The Council of Trade Unions is expressing concern at New Zealands role in current World Trade Organisation services negotiations, and the level of pressure being mounted within them.

The Council of Trade Unions is critical of the lack of progress made in the latest World Trade Organisation ministerial meeting, which concluded in Hong Kong over the weekend."These talks were clearly aimed at making only a few modest steps while trying to convince everyone that it is really now a development round," said CTU Economist Peter Conway, who was at the Hong Kong meetings.

"While progress was good on key issues such as an end date for export subsidies, tariff and duty free access for least developed countries, aid for trade, and cotton, the talks fell a long way short of any real progress on market access in agriculture or the much bigger levels of domestic subsidies," said Peter Conway.

"It was also a real disappointment that there was no progress at all in addressing union issues such as decent work, employment effects of trade liberalisation and reference to labour standards," said Peter Conway.

"The CTU would like to see the Government play a more prominent role in the ongoing negotiations on these issues as well as demonstrate that our commitment to genuine development for developing countries goes beyond agriculture, and also extends to ensuring that these countries do not pay a heavy price in liberalising their services and industrial sectors in order to make gains in agriculture," said Peter Conway.

In non-agricultural market access in areas such as clothing import tariffs, Peter Conway said the negotiations for a free trade deal with China poses a much more significant threat to New Zealand than the text agreed in Hong Kong in this WTO round.

"However in services, it has been obvious that there are a number of countries pushing the pace on services liberalisation," said Peter Conway. "New Zealand has attempted to establish a group around export education which is a major concern. This would risk education services featuring more prominently in future services negotiations."

Peter Conway said that the Government guidelines on services negotiations could be seriously tested next year as the "GATS" negotiations unfold.

In Hong Kong, unions worked alongside many developing countries and Non Governmental Organisations to roll back some of the worst parts of the text on services. Peter Conway said that unions participated in protest marches as well as lobbying inside the conference.

New Zealand Government Ministers Jim Sutton and Phil Goff used a meeting with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) [11] in Hong Kong yesterday to outline the governments continuing commitment to seek better recognition of labour issues in trade negotiations, Peter Conway, Council of Trade Unions Economist said.

Council of Trade Unions president Ross Wilson has been refused access to
China and has had his visitor's visa cancelled by the Chinese Government.Ross Wilson was to attend an OECD seminar in Beijing next week with
representatives of 25 governments, union leaders from 20 countries and 15
foreign investors to discuss raising labour standards in China.

China cancelled the meeting and invalidated all the participants' visas,
claiming it was "inappropriate and inconvenient" timing.

The incident comes as New Zealand officials begin talks in China today for a
free trade agreement between the two countries.

"The seminar was only going to talk about guidelines for foreign companies
in China, so this action by the Chinese Government raises serious questions
as to whether they are willing to even discuss labour standards," Ross
Wilson said.

"It appears that the position of the Chinese Government is that there should
be no constraints or standards for any company operating in China."

It was understood that the decision to cancel the seminar was made at the
highest political level in China, he said.

The move also prevented a planned meeting between the New Zealand union
leader and his Chinese counterparts.

OECD guidelines for multinational companies which were to be discussed at
the seminars included working conditions, union recognition and health and
safety.

Ross Wilson said the international trade union movement would continue to
work for the protection of workers' rights in China.

"More and more consumer products are sourced from China, so Chinese labour
standards are a major international issue.

"It is estimated that even developing countries like Bangladesh and
Indonesia will each lose up to a million manufacturing jobs to cheaper
labour options in China."

The Council of Trade Unions is warning of considerable risks in the large number of trade deals that the Government is currently involved in.Negotiations are under way for deals with Thailand, China, Singapore and Chile as well as the ASEAN countries ? with a number of studies suggesting trade talks with other countries are also on the agenda.

"There is a risk that these deals will permanently damage New Zealand's manufacturing base," CTU president Ross Wilson said today. "There is also a risk that the phased elimination of tariffs will expose some sectors such as whiteware and clothing to unfair competition."

Unions were also concerned that the human rights of workers producing the goods and services traded under these agreements were ignored.

"Myanmar (Burma) has a shocking record on human rights and has been condemned by the International Labour Organisation. The CTU has highlighted to Government numerous incidents of forced labour, assassination of union leaders and gross exploitation of workers."

The agreement with Thailand includes a process for unions to take up complaints about breaches of labour rights, which was an improvement on the Singapore Closer Economic Partnership which had no reference to labour issues, Ross Wilson said.

"But this still falls far short of an enforceable and meaningful process to address beaches of core labour conventions such as the use of child labour, forced labour, discrimination and suppression of union rights."

In a 2003 study on Thailand, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions reported forced labour, sweatshops, the exploitation of illegal migrant workers (including in the production of clothing for export) and forced prostitution (national and international trafficking of women and girls).