As part of the “Trinational Summit on Labor Rights in the USMCA», organized by Canadian specialists, the case of Mexico was analyzed, not only in the implementation of the 2019 labor reform, but also in the use that has been made of the rapid response mechanism and the challenges that ‘it represents for the three countries, since even the tools that have been included in Chapter 23 have weaknesses.

Featuring Sara Slinn of Osgoode Hall Law School and Mark Rowlinson of Goldblatt Law Firm; It was stated that “some weaknesses of the T-MEC stem from the fact that it is still a process mainly led by the signatory countries and not so much by complainants such as workers, NGOs, among others”.

In this sense, it can be considered to continue to be a political and legal process; where the trade unions and workers concerned have no influence on the demands. Likewise, they said that even if it helps to resolve a dispute, it is without the agreement of the parties concerned, this does not mean that they will not be consulted, but rather that it is important to have a relationship with the governments who are going to make the decisions and that with this agreement, it is the parties themselves who will execute the agreements”.

Some of the shortcomings of the rapid response mechanism, they explained, occur because it is a short review process (45 days).

The parties must do what is necessary to avoid calling a panel; but that does not seem practical, so we have to see how this mechanism evolves”.

Similarly, there are questions about whether these mechanisms have the resources to advance and enforce it, particularly in Canada; in addition to the fact that it is “very limited in its application to claims against the United States/Canada, a country where there are major labor dispute problems”.

Long process, avoid further complaints

After analyzing the cases, which resulted in U.S. government complaints against Mexico, Ben Davis of the United Steelworker-Washington DC International Department said that “there is a record of good news, the rapid response mechanism is effective and has the potential for good results The problem is that the system is not yet balanced, as we have seen, workers have to go through a long process, with a lot of resources and with several votes, just to get to the negotiating table,” he stressed.

He added that “we have seen that there are manipulations of electoral ballots and threats and there is no investigation or accused prosecuted. It has also become a practice for employers to use local jurisdiction to avoid accountability, as in the case of Tridonex and Panasonic”.

He pointed out that “very few cases” have been presented, largely because many resources are needed for documentation, for promotion and work in the political field and despite the fact that there is a line where the people can call to give Know the complaints, the truth is that “the parties are lost in the process of preparation and coordination between the trade union organizations in the countries and this means that there is not a large volume of results” .