Trade and human rights

Abstract

Integrating the teaching of trade and labor rights into a broader business and human rights course curriculum has proven to be a challenging task, requiring a careful analysis both of the history of trade law and policy and of the linkages between government trade policy and private business conduct. Over more than a decade of teaching a business and human rights course, the co-authors have analyzed and reappraised the best means of conveying to students the importance of trade and labor rights. This has required a careful assessment of the history of trade law and policy dating back to the post-World War II period, including an often-neglected examination of the failure of the Havana Charter between 1948 and 1950 and its implications for the place of labor rights in the trading system that emerged over the following decades. It also has involved an evaluation of the growing linkages between trade policy outcomes and business conduct, including with respect to product sourcing decisions and addressing the risks of forced labor in global supply chains. Today, perhaps more than ever before, the trade actions of governments are inextricably linked to how businesses address fundamental human rights challenges.