Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement

The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) would establish a comprehensive free trade area in Asia-Pacific. The Agreement is still under negotiation, and it aspires to address in a comprehensive manner both ‘traditional’ and ‘21st century trade-related issues’ that include strong protection of investment and intellectual property rights, regulatory coherence and government procurement.

National trade union centres in some of the 11 participating countries and the ITUC endeavour to improve the Agreement’s provisions so that it could benefit workers as well as remove any provision that could damage public interest. The trade union efforts also aim at achieving the inclusion of an ambitious and binding Labour Chapter. The TPPA comprises Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, United States, and Vietnam.