Mike Levin: “Oman is a small nation, but there are some large issues here. It is an important place, and I would like to support an…”

“Oman is a small nation, but there are some large issues here. It is an important place, and I would like to support an FTA with Oman, as I and many others did with Bahrain. There is an important issue that relates to the path of globalization. Globalization has become increasingly controversial. Expanded trade, that I favor, has been hitting road bump after road bump. One major reason is because too many people within countries are not sharing in the benefits. Too many people are being left out. And that is why we have to care. Among those who are being left out are workers. And how do we make sure that workers participate, are part of the process? By making sure in free trade agreements that they have their basic international rights. These are the basic ILO core labor standards, not American standards, especially the right to associate and to bargain. In Oman, workers do not have those rights. There are no worker organizations today in Oman. There are only labor management committees, representative committees. In a document that the Department of Labor gave to us a few weeks ago, it stated that management holds 70 to 75 percent of the leadership positions in those committees. There is an umbrella committee of these RCs, and management holds all of the positions on the executive committee. So, look, we need to have a free trade agreement that meets the basic ILO standards in practice and in law.…”