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Bush Wins the CAFTA Battle, Women and Poor Workers Pay the Price By NOW Staff August 2, 2005 Today George W. Bush signed into law the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), and women and low-income workers will suffer the consequences. The agreement — with Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic — undermines the safety, economic health and livelihood of communities and poor farmers in those countries, and will have a negative economic impact on women and their families, both here and in the affected areas. Due in large part to Bush's aggressive lobbying in Congress, CAFTA passed the House on July 28 — but by a meager two vote margin (217-215). The Senate passed the measure a month earlier with a 55-45 vote. NOW members and other women's rights supporters sent letters to Congress urging a vote against this agreement, which puts the profits of large U.S. corporations ahead of critical protections for workers and families. The Bush administration has disguised this outsourcing bill as an effort to "open up markets." In fact, most Central American workers are so poor they will never create a market for U.S. goods because they can't afford to buy them. All that CAFTA will do for impoverished Central American workers will be to target them as an excellent source of dirt-cheap labor and increase the inhumane treatment of those workers. "Free" Trade at What Cost? CAFTA's provisions lack strong labor and environmental protections, making it harmful to both U.S. and Central American workers and farmers. It does not require compliance with even the most basic internationally recognized labor rights and specifically fails to protect women workers against discrimination. CAFTA will increase the number of households living in poverty, and almost a quarter of Central American households are headed by women. CAFTA, as in the case of NAFTA, enables trans-national companies to move their businesses to Central America where they can get away with paying low wages, exploiting the use of pesticides and chemicals that are prohibited in the U.S., and subjecting workers to harmful conditions that violate international human rights standards. Women constitute the majority of workers in Central American maquilas (factories), which are expected to grow in numbers under CAFTA. While women may appear to have more earning potential in the maquiladora (manufacturing) sector, their work is precarious and unstable. In order to make more money, they work grueling hours under poor conditions with low morale. Intense and long workdays, nonpayment of overtime; no personal leave for reasons of health or family obligations, labor violence (which implies, among other things, beating and verbal abuse) are all common practices in many maquilas. In addition, CAFTA's language on labor rights does not address problems such as sexual harassment and discrimination, which could have serious repercussions for women who work in the maquiladora sector throughout the region. According to reports, intrusive pregnancy tests are required in order to apply for leave and benefits (vacations, Christmas bonuses, etc.). There also has been an increase in the practice of deducting fees for pensions and health-care from workers' salaries, which are then unfairly appropriated and never transferred to the proper institutions, such as the Social Security Agency. There is a continuing myth that jobs created by international investors and free trade agreements bring women out of poverty. However without the support of unions or the ability to negotiate fair wages, jobs in export processing zones often leave women with a little more that the barest necessities. CAFTA will also raise the cost of essential necessities for Central American and Dominican Republic families. The flood of foreign goods into the local markets as generated by CAFTA (due to the elimination of tariffs on such goods) will not only force out local (often women-run) competition, but also increase prices of basic commodities. And CAFTA also prevents approval of inexpensive generic medicines, threatening poor women's health and the lives of people with HIV/AIDS. Sources:
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