Dear Tony,Mohammad Rubel, a 22-year-old Bangladeshi man, was trafficked from his home in Bangladesh to a Malaysian palm oil plantation. He traveled on a dangerous ocean journey during which dozens died, through a trafficking camp in the jungle where traffickers threatened to kill him if his father didn’t transfer them $2,500, and eventually ended up on a Malaysian palm oil plantation. There, he worked for months with no wage, and was told he had high debts he had to pay off to his labor broker (who had confiscated his passport) before he could leave.*

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement currently before U.S. Congress would allow Malaysia to dramatically expand its trade in palm oil, but would provide no protection for workers like Mohammad! Tell Congress to reject this dangerous deal until it can be negotiated with labor groups to provide genuine protections for workers!

Malaysia and Vietnam have both demonstrated long-standing disregard for the most fundamental human rights, such as freedom of association and elimination of forced labor. Proponents of the TPP argue that separate bilateral agreements on labor and human rights for these countries will improve conditions, even though these serial labor rights violators will receive the benefits up front before they make necessary reforms.

You can read more about the many ways this misguided agreement, developed in secret with ample input from some of the world’s largest companies, fails workers in our blog on the Huffington Post.

And you can help us stop this deal in its tracks!

  1. Spread the Word! Share our blog with your friends through your favorite media. Here’s some language to help you out:

Facebook/email share: The text of the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is finally accessible to the public, although insiders from more than 500 major companies have had access to the negotiation and writing process for years. Predictably, the result values the rights of corporations over the needs of workers, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation including forced and child labor. Learn more about this dangerous deal here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/judy-gearhart/tpp-ignores-worker-needs_b_8537878.html

Sample tweet: #TPP, negotiated to benefit business over people, leaves workers vulnerable worldwide.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/judy-gearhart/tpp-ignores-worker-needs_b_8537878.html #StopTPP via @ILRF

  1. Take Action! Urge your congressional representatives to vote against the TPP! Or, if you are outside the U.S., find a local effort to join (like this one from Australia). And, of course, encourage others to take action too by sharing the petition link after you take action!

The TPP is more of the same failed approach to trade that has time and again put profits over people and thrown workers under the bus. Please stand with us to demand that workers like Mohammad are given genuine protection in any trade agreement.

In Solidarity,
Judy Gearhart

* Read Mohammad’s full story in this incredible piece from the Wall Street Journal.