PHL free trade talks with Europe must consider worker interests, NGO says

TRADE Justice Pilipinas said the government needs to address workers’ rights before continuing negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU).

In a statement on Monday, the group called for a halt to FTA negotiations “until there is concrete, verifiable progress on workers’ rights, forced labor enforcement, and a real industrial strategy that creates decent jobs.”

The statement was issued after a consultation on the EU-Philippines FTA organized by the International Trade Committee of the European Parliament.

During the consultation, labor group Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) said trade liberalization has long failed Filipino workers.

“Each new deal benefits a narrow elite, while wages stagnate and inequality deepens. Without structural reforms, this FTA will simply lock in an unjust economic model,” SENTRO Secretary General Josua Mata said.

He noted how the order meant to guarantee minimum wages for commercial fishermen who supply export markets “exists mostly on paper.”

“As such, commercial fishers have yet to receive minimum wage, and many report zero net income after voyages due to debt and exploitative sharing systems,” he said.

“These conditions amount to labor bordering on forced work — in supply chains linked directly to exports. Trade must follow reform — not replace it,” he added.

Meanwhile, Joseph Purugganan of Focus on the Global South raised concerns about whether the agreement is a partnership of equals, noting how the US reciprocal tariffs embody how powerful economies weaponize trade instruments for their own economic and political benefit.

“Trade Justice Pilipinas views the EU-Philippines FTA through this lens of weaponized interdependence,” he said, adding that “the burden of proving otherwise rests with the EU.” — Justine Irish D. Tabile