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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of the Secretary

 
Bureau of International Labor Affairs; U.S. National 
Administrative Office; North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation; 
Hearing on Submission #9703

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Labor.

ACTION: Notice of hearing.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to announce a hearing, open to 
the public, on Submission #9703.
    Submission #9703, was filed with the U.S. National Administrative 
Office (NAO) on December 15, 1998, by the Echlin Workers Alliance, a 
group that includes the Teamsters; the Canadian Auto Workers; the Union 
of Needletrades and Industrial Textile Employees (UNITE); the United 
Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America; the Paperworkers; and 
the Steelworkers. Twenty-four other organizations, including non-
governmental organizations, human rights groups and labor unions from 
the three NAFTA countries are cited as concerned organizations in the 
submission. The submission was accepted for review by the NAO on 
January 30, 1998, and a Notice of acceptance for review was published 
in the Federal Register on February 4, 1998.
    Article 16(3) of the North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation 
(NAALC) provides for the review of labor law matters in Canada and 
Mexico by the NAO in accordance with U.S. domestic procedures. Revised 
procedural guidelines pertaining to the submission, review, and 
reporting process utilized by the Office were published in the Federal 
Register on April 7, 1994 (59 FR 16660). The guidelines provide for a 
discretionary hearing as part of the review.

DATES: The hearing will be held on March 23, 1998, commencing at 9:00 
a.m. Persons desiring to present oral testimony at the hearing must 
submit a request in writing, along with a written statement or brief 
desiring the information to be presented or position to be taken.

ADDRESSES: The hearing will be held at the Department of Labor, 200 
Constitution Ave., N.W., Room C-5515 1A and 1B, in Washington, D.C. 
Written statements or briefs and requests to present oral testimony may 
be mailed or hand delivered to the U.S. National Administrative Office 
(NAO), Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Room C-4327, 
Washington, D.C. 20210. Requests to present oral testimony and written 
statements or briefs must be received by the NAO no later than close of 
business, March 13, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Irasema T. Garza, Secretary, U.S. National Administrative Office, 
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Room C-4327, 
Washington, D.C. 20210. Telephone: (202) 501-6653 (this is not a toll 
free number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Nature and Conduct of Hearing

    As set out in the notice published in the Federal Register on 
February 4, 1998, the objective of the NAO's review of the submission 
is to gather information to better understand and publicly report on 
the Government of Mexico's promotion of, compliance with, and effective 
enforcement of, its labor law through appropriate government action, 
among them its laws relating to freedom of association and the right to 
bargain collectively as well as its labor laws relating to the 
prevention of occupational injuries and illnesses in violation of the 
NAALC article 3(1). The review will also address the composition of the 
labor tribunal in this case in view of its compliance with Article 5(4) 
of the NAALC which commits the Parties to ensuring that tribunals that 
conduct review proceedings are impartial and independent and do not 
have any substantial interest in the outcome of the matter.
    The hearing will be conducted by the Secretary of the NAO or the 
Secretary's designee. It will be open to the public. All proceedings 
will be conducted in English, with simultaneous translation in English 
and Spanish provided. The public files for the submission, including 
written statements, briefs, and requests to present oral testimony, 
will be made a part of the appropriate hearing record. The public files 
will also be available for inspection at the NAO prior to the hearing.
    The hearing will be transcribed. A transcript of the proceeding 
will be made available for inspection, as provided for in Section E of 
the procedural guidelines, or may be purchased from the reporting 
company.
    Disabled persons should contact the Secretary of the NAO no later 
than March 17, 1998 if special accommodations are needed.

II. Written Statements or Briefs and Requests to Present Oral Testimony

    Written statements or briefs shall provide a description of the 
information to be presented or position taken and shall be legibly 
typed or printed. Requests to present oral testimony shall include the 
name, address, and telephone number of the witness, the organization 
represented, if any, and any other information pertinent to the 
request. Five copies of a statement or brief and a single copy of a 
request to present oral testimony shall be submitted to the NAO at the 
time of filing.
    No request to present oral testimony will be considered unless 
accompanied by a written statement or brief. A request to present oral 
testimony may be denied if the written statement or brief suggests that 
the information sought to be provided is unrelated to the review of the 
submission or for other appropriate reasons. The NAO will notify each 
requester of the disposition of the request to present oral testimony.
    In presenting testimony, the witness should summarize the written 
statement or brief, may supplement the written statement or brief with 
relevant information, and should be prepared to answer questions from 
the Secretary of the NAO or the Secretary's designee. Oral testimony 
will ordinarily be limited to a ten minute presentation, not including 
the time for questions. Persons desiring more than ten minutes for 
their presentation should so state in the request, setting out reasons 
why additional time is necessary.
    The requirements relating to the submission of written statements 
or briefs and requests to present oral testimony may be waived by the 
Secretary of the NAO for reasons of equity and public interest.

    Signed at Washington, D.C. on February 13, 1998.
Irasema T. Garza,
Secretary, U.S. National Administrative Office.
[FR Doc. 98-4371 Filed 2-19-98; 8:45 am]
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