In the light of claims of insufficient labour laws prevailing in Peru, the US Department of Labor released a report under the labour chapter of the United States-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement, raising “significant concerns regarding the right to freedom of association in Peru’s non-traditional export sectors”, which mostly includes exports of textiles and apparel products.
The report also raised questions on the “labor law enforcement in the South American nation”, and its progress since signing the PTPA in 2007. The report has also offered several recommendations to address these questions and concerns, as per a statement issued by the Department of Labor, to facilitate future trade terms between the two countries. According to the statement, the US government will be taking a stock of the progress made in Peru in this regard in the next nine months, after which it will come up with an appropriate course of action.
This report came in response to a complaint filed by the International Labor Rights Forum, Perú Equidad, and seven other Peruvian workers’ organizations with the Department’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs. They had claimed that the Peruvian government had “failed to enforce its labour laws effectively”, and that the country’s law relating to job contracts in the non-traditional exports segment does not conform with the freedom of association norms.
The report was published within 180 days after reviewing the matter.
