Trade Liberalization and Organized Labour in the Asia-Pacific Region: Barriers to Labour Internationalism

This article examines the impact of international power politics on trade liberalization and organized labour. Using regional and bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) in the Asia-Pacific region as a case study, it discusses how China's economic rise and the ensuing interstate rivalry in the region have contributed to the proliferation of FTAs. In examining the politics of nation-states and organized labour in the Asia-Pacific with regard to FTAs, it identifies economic nationalism as a barrier to transnational labour solidarity. With a critical examination of alternative trade policies, this article explores alternative venues for global social justice and labour solidarity.