United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai today announced that the United States has asked Mexico to review whether workers at the Panasonic Automotive Systems de Mexico facility in Reynosa, State of Tamaulipas, are being denied the rights of free association and collective bargaining. The request marks the third time that the United States has requested Mexico’s review of freedom of association and collective bargaining rights issues under the Rapid Response Labor Mechanism (RRM) in the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), all of which have been in the automotive sector.
“This announcement demonstrates once again that, when concerns arise, we will work swiftly to stand up for workers on both sides of the border,” said Ambassador Katherine Tai. “Along with Secretary Marty Walsh and his team at the Department of Labor, we have worked closely with the Mexican government to address Rapid Response Labor Mechanism matters quickly, and I look forward to doing the same on this issue as well.”
In connection with the U.S. request, Ambassador Tai has directed the Secretary of the Treasury to suspend the liquidation for all unliquidated entries of goods from the Panasonic facility.
