103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. CON. RES. 257

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Whereas the integration of the global economy is accelerating;

Whereas capital and technology are now easily transferred

across national borders and throughout the world, while

labor policies remain comparatively bound by national

policies and allegiances;

Whereas the importance of promoting international respect

for fundamental worker rights and labor standards is

crucial to building broader support for balanced, equitable, and sustainable growth in an expanding global

economy;
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Whereas there exists a growing body of international law and

international trade agreements, some of which originated

in the early 1900s, that firmly establish the free exercise

of fundamental worker rights, improved working conditions, and rising living standards as essential requirements of fair competition in a healthy, open, growing

global economy;

Whereas in 1941 President Franklin Roosevelt, as part of the

Atlantic Charter, committed the United States to ‘‘the

fullest collaboration between all nations in the economic

field with the object of securing, for all, improved labor

standards, economic advancement, and social security’’;

Whereas the United States Government during World War II

recognized the crucial importance of the needs, interests,

and aspirations of all working people in general and the

role that trade unions in particular would play in the reconstruction of Europe and the future development of

newly independent nations;

Whereas the United States Labor Attach ́e Corps was established within the United States Government in 1943 and

individual labor attach ́es ever since have been posted to

United States embassies in scores of foreign countries to

study and encourage the concurrent development of professional labor ministries within foreign governments and

strong, independent, indigenous trade unions among

working people in foreign countries;

Whereas the United States Labor Attach ́e Corps throughout

the cold war played a crucial role in the struggle against

Communism and in building support for freedom and

democratic values and institutions throughout the world;
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Whereas there is an increasing need for the American people

and their policymakers in the post-cold war era to better

understand the needs, interests, and aspirations of working people abroad and the concerns that they share in

common with working people in the United States;

Whereas the United States Labor Attach ́e Corps continues to

reach beyond the traditional focus of the United States

Foreign Service upon senior foreign government officials

to attain a broader, in-depth understanding of grassroots

concerns and developments among working people in foreign countries and the wider significance those concerns

hold for political processes and socioeconomic developments within foreign countries;

Whereas the United States Labor Attach ́e Corps for 50 years

has demonstrated repeatedly the crucial importance of

free, independent, and democratic trade unions to the development of free, independent, and democratic societies,

thus advancing the profound national interest of the

United States in promoting the further development of

democratic values, processes, and institutions throughout

the world;

Whereas the United States Labor Attach ́e Corps facilitates

many useful international exchanges between organized

and unorganized United States and foreign workers and

assists with a wide range of the international activities of

several United States executive agencies, including the

Department of State, the Department of Labor, and the

Office of the United States Trade Representative;

Whereas the national labor policies and standards of foreign

countries, and the extent to which the governments of

foreign countries are meeting and enforcing their legal

obligations in this regard, are increasingly important fac-
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tors in fair trade, particularly in determining whether

consumer markets with broad-based purchasing power

will emerge in those countries and whether most foreign

workers in those countries will ever be able to buy United

States exports, thus making the monitoring and reporting

functions of the United States Labor Attach ́e Corps of

growing importance; and

Whereas President Clinton during his official visit to Europe

in January 1994 reaffirmed the United States commitment to promoting respect for the fundamental rights of

workers everywhere and to pursuing policies that will enable working people in the United States and abroad to

share more fully in the benefits of expanding international trade and investment in the global economy:

Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That—

3 (1) the Congress commends the United States

4 Labor Attach ́e Corps for the historic role it has

5 played throughout the past 50 years in nurturing

6 freedom and assisting in the development of demo7 cratic values and processes throughout the world;

8 and

9 (2) the Secretary of State and the Secretary of

10 Labor should jointly—

11 (A) review the mission and organization of

12 the United States Labor Attach ́e Corps, and

13 determine what reforms are necessary to rede-
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1 sign and assure continued relevance of the work

2 of the Corps in the post-cold war era;

3 (B) implement such reforms to the extent

4 possible under existing law, and consistent with

5 existing resources;

6 (C) design and implement an interagency

7 recruitment and training program to assure

8 sufficient qualified personnel for the Corps, and

9 to enhance the professional development of ex10 isting personnel, consistent with the continuing

11 need for monitoring and reporting on the needs,

12 interests and aspirations of working people in

13 foreign countries;

14 (D) develop a plan to assure that a labor

15 counselor, attach ́e or reporting officer is as16 signed to every United States Embassy abroad

17 by January 1, 1997, and determine what addi18 tional resources are necessary to achieve this

19 goal; and

20 (E) not later than January 1, 1995, sub21 mit a report to the Speaker of the House of

22 Representatives and the Chairman of the Com23 mittee on Foreign Relations, detailing the out24 come of the review conducted and the steps un25 dertaken pursuant to this section, and rec-
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1 ommending such changes in law and such addi2 tional resources as may be necessary to imple3 ment needed further reforms.

Passed the House of Representatives October 3,

1994.

Attest:

Clerk.

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. CON. RES. 257

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Commending the work of the United States Labor

Attache ́ Corps, and for other purposes.