EU-China BIT and FTA Enhance Labor Cooperation and Protection

Abstract

An EU-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) can stimulate new labor protections and collective labor union cooperation in Chinese and EU workplaces, benefitting individual workers. Not only will it bring possible substantive improvements provided by the sustainability provisions calling for compliance with ILO labor standards, but most importantly, the interface of EU trade unions with Chinese workers, employers, and the local ACFTUs, brought about by its accompanying labor cooperation provisions and activities will enhance worker rights. It will also provide a measure of certainty with rules to guide the evolving BRI across the New Silk Road.

Perhaps it is time for the European Union (EU) and Chinese leaders to build on the existing EU–China 2020 Strategic Agenda for Cooperation, quickly conclude on-going negotiations on their EU-China Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), and begin substantive negotiations on an EU-China FTA? China is now the EU's second-biggest trading partner behind the United States and the EU is China's biggest trading partner. The resulting BIT and FTA could enhance trade and investment opportunities and contribute to employment opportunities and rising labor standards and bringing with it increased labor cooperation and worker protections. There are recent precedents indicating China is open to more substantive and cooperative labor provisions in their FTAs and BITs.

This paper focuses on enhanced labor standards and collective labor cooperation under China and EU Members’ existing and proposed FTAs and BITs. Following the Introduction, Part II discusses the economic connections of trade and FDI between EU and China and the pathways to further the relationship; Part III provides a legal comparison of their different approaches on labor standards, dispute resolution, and labor cooperation in FTAs and BITs; Part IV provides analyses on the varying approaches of enhanced labor cooperation; Part V states the conclusion and suggests the EU-China corridor of the new Silk Road could and should be paved with standards consistent with international labor standards and emanating from a EU-China FTA and with its accompanying labor cooperation that exists within and behind the legal terms.