CALL/ALAL/NLG Network
In Mexico City, July 2005 a group of independent unions and labour law associations from the Americas (with a smattering of academics present) signed a delcaration that formed a regional network of labour law associations with a mandate to create a regional labour relations observatory and to advance conditions of labour through promotion of policy change regionally. I was a founding member of the group.
The Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers, the National Lawyers’ Guild (U.S.), the Association of Latin American Labour Lawyers and its constituent members, include the associations of labour lawyers of Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, Cuba and Mexico, among others, were founding partners of the regional network.
The network, which is still un-named and being formed, has three main initial projects it wishes to run. The first is an information sharing website which can host labour law and other legal resources, eventually in translation, for all jurisdictions in the Americas. The second is to provide an information exchange method for policy and case developments that may benefit from transnational attention and solidarity. The third is to create a more robust “observatory” and reflexive policy-making regional body. This third step is an applied research model.
We have the participation and support of several unions, associations of labour lawyers, and academic institutions. We also have support from Venezuelan and Brazilian governments.
We are currently exploring partnerships with Canadian and U.S. educational institutions, labour unions and associations of labour unions, such as the Canada Labour Council. We are forming working groups to set applied research agendas for the next one to three years. We are also identifying funding opportunities.
