Colombia’s Labor Minister Rafael Pardo met with his Canadian counterpart, Lisa Raitt, to discuss the implementation of new labor agreements.
The new labor policies are part of the Free Trade Agreement signed by the two countries which came into effect last August.
Pardo said the two ministers had analyzed labor policies concerning human rights, workers protections, and the attempt to end exploitative labor subcontracting and outsourcing.
Regarding dangers facing union leaders — for decades Colombia has been one of the most dangerous places to be a trade unionist — Pardo stated the government had “always been concerned with any violation of fundamental rights of individuals.”
The ministers also discussed how to strengthen investment between their countries. Canada’s primary Colombian investment is petroleum.