INTERNATIONAL POLICY ANALYSIS Stopping the Race to the Bottom Challenges for Workers’ Rights in Supply Chains in Asia MARK ANNER December 2015 „ „ Two complementary economic processes have put downward pressure on wages and working conditions in the global economy: the liberalization of trade, and the growth and consolidation of global supply chains controlled by multinational corporations. „ „ Ensuring decent work in the context of trade liberalization and GSC consolidation not only requires better monitoring and enforcement of core labor standards(CLSs), but also involves developing better rules to regulate trade and global supply chains. „ „ Efforts to ensure workers’ rights in the global economy must also go beyond the CLS approach. A core labor standards plus(CLS+) approach would expand the range of labor standards covered by trade agreements, including wages, working hours, health and safety, while also taking into consideration the ways in which trade and global supply chains bring about low wages and poor working conditions. „ „ Trade union and democratic worker participation must be a component of all programs at the company, national, and international level. Research indicates that empowered workers can be the best monitors of violations.