Steelworkers Union Challenges NAFTA's Constitutionality

 
In July, the United Steelworkers of America (USWA) filed a Supreme Court petition challenging the constitutionality of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The union argues that as a treaty, NAFTA should have been approved by a two-thirds majority in the Senate, but in fact was passed by only simple majorities in both houses of Congress in 1993.

The USWA first introduced a federal suit on these grounds in 1998. In February, the Federal Court of Appeals in Atlanta concluded that the complaint raised political issues beyond its jurisdiction.

In addition to the constitutional issues involved, the USWA argues that NAFTA is "bad trade policy" that has caused unemployment and factory closings in the United States. "Our members' lives are being profoundly affected by a treaty that has never been properly voted on by their elected representatives," USWA president Leo Gerard complained.

For more on the USWA lawsuit, see www.fairtradewatch.org/nafta/lawsuit.html.