Gillibrand, Colleagues Urge Trump Administration To Prioritize American Workers In U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Negotiations

Gillibrand, Colleagues Urge Trump Administration To Prioritize American Workers In U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Negotiations

May 20, 2026

Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, along with 14 of her Senate colleagues, wrote a letter to the U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer urging the Trump administration to prioritize American workers during the upcoming review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The lawmakers laid out a comprehensive plan and called on the Trump administration to address the offshoring of American jobs, stop China from undermining U.S. businesses and consumers, hold Mexico accountable for enforcing labor laws, and stop China's growing investment in Mexico that undercuts American workers.

"USMCA, negotiated by the first Trump Administration in partnership with Congress, took important steps to provide market stability and strengthen labor standards. These standards must be viewed as a floor, not a ceiling," wrote the senators. "There are urgent issues that must be addressed during the upcoming review in order to ensure workers benefit as promised. We stand ready to work together to support American workers, manufacturing, and the domestic economy."

"We urge you to keep American workers at the center of this Agreement, as well as ensure their seat at the table now, throughout the joint review, and in the future," the senators continued.

In the letter, Gillibrand and her colleagues outlined how any revised agreement must benefit workers, including addressing offshoring, protecting workers' rights, and ensuring North American manufacturing is protected from increased Chinese investment and integration into our supply chains, which threatens American workers and businesses. Specifically, the lawmakers called on the administration to:

• Address Offshoring: USMCA must have strong provisions to prohibit and prevent offshoring, as well as concrete plans to work with Mexico to increase wages and labor standards to discourage offshoring in the first place.
• Address Increased Chinese Investment in Mexico:Companies based in the People's Republic of China are setting up shop in Mexico to take advantage of the preferential trade treatment afforded by USMCA and circumvent U.S. trade laws. The senators called for this loophole to be closed to prevent its use as a backdoor to the North American economy by third-party actors, particularly our adversaries.
• Address Chinese Expansion into North American Supply Chains: To boost North American manufacturing, USMCA included stronger rules on countries of origin to secure supply chains and prevent outsourcing in key sectors like automobiles. The senators demanded that we strengthen and expand these standards to ensure that parts in these sectors are made in North America and cover new advanced technologies.
• Ensure Mexico Fully Enforces Its Labor Laws: An independent review found in 2025 that Mexico is not in compliance with its labor obligations under the USMCA, including the core obligation to effectively enforce its new labor laws to ensure workers are able to organize independent unions free from coercion and employer intimidation. This has contributed to a persistent wage gap with American workers that leads to offshoring. The senators called on the administration to prioritize this fundamental enforcement issue during the joint review to ensure a level playing field for American workers.
• Ensure Rapid Response Mechanism Functions Well for Workers: The lawmakers urged that USMCA's innovative Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM), which has resulted in increased wages and organizing rights for workers in Mexico, be prioritized during the joint review.
• Robustly Fund the Bureau of International Labor Affairs:The Bureau of International Labor Affairs plays a critical role in combating forced labor, child labor, and human trafficking abroad. The senators urged the administration to work with Congress to provide ILAB with the resources it needs to ensure enforcement of labor standards in the USMCA.
• Fully Enforce Forced Labor Ban: The lawmakers called on the Trump administration to identify concrete actions all three parties can take to improve enforcement of existing forced labor bans, including regular public reporting on enforcement data and protocols to share intelligence underpinning enforcement actions.

The letter was also signed by Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Tina Smith (D-MN), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Peter Welch (D-VT), and Cory Booker (D-NJ).

A full version of this letter is available here.

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