MEXICO CITY: US trade negotiators have floated a plan to introduce rules under a reworked Nafta that stipulate a certain amount of automotive production must be carried out in areas paying higher salaries, two sources familiar with the matter said.
Setting such wage requirements for the auto industry under the North American Free Trade Agreement could benefit the United States and Canada, whose trade unions say that lower Mexican pay has caused a drift in manufacturing capacity to Mexico.
The US plan aims to explore what percentage of output could be in areas paying higher salaries, and at what levels of remuneration the scheme could be targeted, said one of the two sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Mexico’s government and its Nafta partners were all analysing the US idea, the source said.
The news follows a week in which hopes have risen that the United States, Mexico and Canada could be closer to a consensus on one of the thorniest issues surrounding renegotiation of Nafta — regional content levels for the auto industry.
Last week, industry sources said that the United States had withdrawn a divisive demand that at least 50 per cent of Nafta auto content should come from the United States. The wage idea was floated after that, the sources said.
The United States, which also wants to raise the minimum auto content threshold for the Nafta region to 85 per cent from 62.5 per cent, is exploring setting a wage floor at $15 per hour for the salary component, the second of the sources said.
However, if a deal is reachable, it would likely end up at a lower level than that, the source added.
Mexico’s economy ministry had no comment on the matter, a ministry spokesman said. Alex Lawrence, a spokesman for Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, said it was a question for the office of US Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer “as to whether they are going to present something along those lines.” — Reuters
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