That qualifies them for consideration in trade negotiations. Free traders have yet to offer a convincing answer to that question. Some labor leaders and environmentalists can be criticized for a similarly mistaken assessment of what the United States confronts in its trade relations with developing countries. But hard-line activists often seem unwilling to acknowledge that their preferred policy outcome is not achievable in the near or medium term, particularly in the area of labor rights. Given this opening position, it is difficult to imagine the WTO reaching consensus anytime soon on rule changes that would permit the use of trade sanctions to enforce labor standards.
Many labor activists are well aware of the positions of developing country governments.
They argue that these positions can be changed, in part by strengthening independent labor unions. To expedite change, some labor supporters want the United States to use the leverage provided by its market more aggressively. But globalization has reduced the relative importance of the U.S. market for many developing countries. Given where developing countries stand on these issues today, it is not realistic to insist that fast-track mandate the inclusion of enforceable labor or environmental provisions in future trade agreements. That is not the position of all activists, but it has been the position of a sufficient number of them to prevent the approval of fast-track for several years.