Labour Standards and the 'Race to the Bottom': Rethinking Globalization and Workers' Rights from Developmental and Solidaristic Perspectives

Abstract

There is a protracted stalemate between rich (the North) and poor (the South) countries over the question of minimum labour standards in developing economies. This paper is a sequel to Singh and Zammit (2000). It considers afresh key issues in the controversy. While fully recognizing the moral, political and philosophical dimension of this complex issue, the paper concentrates on the central economic question of the "race to the bottom". It emphasizes the difficulties of establishing labour standards in the va…