PHL faces tough hurdle to keep goods duty-free under US GSP

For the Philippines to remain on the list of the United States Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), a privilege that will expire on July 31, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has to explain what the government is doing to improve the handling of labor disputes and the protection of workers' rights. The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has asked the Labor Department for assurance that it is complying with dispute policies and is addressing concerns on mediation—factors that will help determine if Philippine products should continue to have preferential treatment in the form of duty-free trade. The program covers 4,975 tariff lines worth $18.5 billion from 129 economies. Philippine goods under the US GSP are bananas, sugarcane, edible oils, wood products, cotton fabrics, rattan products, footwear materials, ceramics and baskets, with total yearly estimated value of $1.1 billion. Issues raised during a March 28 hearing on whether or not the Philippines should be part of the US GSP must be clarified by DOLE, the USTR noted on its website on Tuesday. The petitioner against the Philippines in this case is the International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF). The major areas of concern about the Philippines raised by ILRF include jurisdiction and registration of unions, passage of pending labor legislation, and creation of and inter-agency committee on violence against union members. The Philippine government needs to shed light on how to apply the proper administrative process to address those concerns, according to the USTR. The USTR is also interested to know how the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council, Committee on Human Rights, Department of Justice and other agencies would be involved in hearing cases that involving violence against trade unions from 2011 and 2012 “to help us better understand the newer structures and processes that the government has set up.” — VS/BM, GMA News