New duty/quota free treatment will also be available for apparel made in the CBI from fabrics determined to be in "short supply" in the United States, and for designated "hand-loomed, handmade, or folklore" articles.
The USTR-chaired Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) conducted a review of countries' eligibility for CBTPA preferences, taking into account the criteria established in the Act.
Through a series of meetings, the TPSC identified a number of concerns regarding certain countries' performance with respect to the eligibility criteria established in the CBTPA.
Objectives with respect to intellectual property protection, worker rights, implementation of WTO agreements, and commitments to abide by international anti-corruption guidelines were pursued with a range of countries.
Guatemala was asked to facilitate negotiations to reemploy the 900 fired workers and to commit to speedy and effective implementation of labor code requirements with respect to this case.
Guatemala's government was also asked to work with the country's legislature to pass proposed revisions to the labor code, and to provide a commitment, over the longer-term, to continual improvements in law enforcement and judicial administration related to the protection of worker rights.
In their responses to U.S. concerns, Guatemala's vice president, Minister of Labor, and other officials have demonstrated considerable good faith in seeking to improve the worker rights situation in their country.
The United States welcomes the Ministry of Labor's efforts to date to facilitate a resolution to the situation arising from the 1999 incident involving banana workers.
As a further sign of the seriousness with which the United States views these issues, Ambassador Barshefsky is initiating immediately a review of Guatemala's eligibility as a beneficiary country under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP).
This unprecedented self-initiated review will also be concluded in April 2001, and will focus on the government's response to anti-union violence and other aspects of internationally recognized worker rights.
In Honduras, the United States focused on the government's efforts to revise the Honduran labor code to reflect recommendations made by the International Labour Organization.