@phdthesis{8081804,
  abstract     = {{The past decade has witnessed an exponential increase in bilateral deep trade agreements which increasingly deal with non-tariff measures and values, including labour rights. The EU is a frontrunner in including labour rights in its bilateral trade agreements (i.e. the trade- labour linkage). Despite continuous empirical developments in this regard and increasing consumer and academic attention for this topic, there is still a lot we do not understand about this linkage.
Therefore, this dissertation aims to deepen our understanding of the EU’s trade-labour linkage. In particular it advances answers related to three research questions. First, what are the defining features of the EU’s trade-labour linkage? Second, what is the impact of the EU’s trade-labour linkage? Third, how can the findings concerning the design and the impact of the EU’s trade-labour linkage be explained?
The first introductory chapter deals with the current state of the literature which is quite limited when it comes to answering the three research questions. Apart from that, the chapter deals with the ontological, epistemological as well as methodological assumptions of the dissertation. In here I set out that I mainly rely on interpretivism and induction. This results in a strong emphasis on the perception of the trade-labour linkage, for which I rely on a large amount of empirical data retrieved through document analysis, interviews as well as some participatory observation.
The main body of the dissertation consists of five articles which all provide insights into one or more of the three research questions. The insights from these articles, as well as additional research that has been carried out throughout the PhD (of which some has already resulted in additional publications), are summarised in the concluding chapter of the PhD, which is structured along the three research questions. For each question a tentative comparison is made with the US’ trade-labour linkage to put the EU’s linkage in perspective.
Concerning the first question, I argue that there is a widening and deepening over time of the EU’s trade-labour linkage and that the EU’s approach can be characterised as ‘promotional’. Turning to the second question, I argue that overall the EU’s impact is limited, unless when it comes to setting up institutional mechanisms for social dialogue or when it comes to side impact. Finally, related to the third research question, I argue that the EU’s promotional approach is mostly related to ideational factors, being the absence of protectionist ideas, the status of the trade-labour linkage as an unobjectionable norm and a strong belief in the effectiveness of the promotional approach. The EU’s limited impact is not only and not even primarily due to its promotional approach. Apart from the underutilisation of this approach, one needs to take into account the idea that labour rights are regarded as part of sustainable development, the absence of strong belief that labour rights can be achieved by means of a trade agreement and the lack of institutional ownership to deal with the trade-labour linkage.
The dissertation concludes with some reflections on the main added value of the PhD as a whole and advances some areas for further research.}},
  author       = {{Van Den Putte, Lore}},
  keywords     = {{civil society,International Labour Organisation,trade,labour norms,Korea,Colombia,European Union,Peru,cerise}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{165}},
  publisher    = {{Ghent University. Faculty of Political and Social Sciences}},
  school       = {{Ghent University}},
  title        = {{The European Union's trade-labour linkage : beyond the 'soft' approach?}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}