Interviews
Emerging China is killing Canadian clothing & textile industry
07 Jul '05
3 min read
Workers to file complaint against illegal, unfair trade practices
A group of Canadian workers is taking unprecedented action this week to stem the flow of Chinese imports devastating Canada's clothing and textile industry.
The industry, Canada's 6th-largest manufacturing sector, is under siege since China joined the World Trade Organization and started flooding Canadian markets.
Now, members of the union UNITE HERE Canada, which represents workers in Canada's clothing industry, will appeal to the Canadian International Trade Tribunal to urge the Canadian government to help stem the rising tide.
“The numbers are truly staggering,” says UNITE HERE Canadian director Alex Dagg. “Since quotas were lifted four months ago imports of clothing from China have jumped over 200 per cent in some categories.”
When China joined the WTO, it agreed safeguards might be needed to avoid disruptions of domestic apparel markets. The United States and the European Union, among others, have enacted those safeguards.
“Why is Canada sitting on its hands doing nothing?” says Dagg. “With the US and EU implementing their own safeguard, Canada is now targeted as a market that can pick up the slack, and that's made the problem even more acute.”
UNITE HERE will be joined by three individual members of the union to file a petition under the Canadian International Trade Tribunal Act asking for limits on the dramatic surges in Chinese imports.
A group of Canadian workers is taking unprecedented action this week to stem the flow of Chinese imports devastating Canada's clothing and textile industry.
The industry, Canada's 6th-largest manufacturing sector, is under siege since China joined the World Trade Organization and started flooding Canadian markets.
Now, members of the union UNITE HERE Canada, which represents workers in Canada's clothing industry, will appeal to the Canadian International Trade Tribunal to urge the Canadian government to help stem the rising tide.
“The numbers are truly staggering,” says UNITE HERE Canadian director Alex Dagg. “Since quotas were lifted four months ago imports of clothing from China have jumped over 200 per cent in some categories.”
When China joined the WTO, it agreed safeguards might be needed to avoid disruptions of domestic apparel markets. The United States and the European Union, among others, have enacted those safeguards.
“Why is Canada sitting on its hands doing nothing?” says Dagg. “With the US and EU implementing their own safeguard, Canada is now targeted as a market that can pick up the slack, and that's made the problem even more acute.”
UNITE HERE will be joined by three individual members of the union to file a petition under the Canadian International Trade Tribunal Act asking for limits on the dramatic surges in Chinese imports.
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