ABSTRACT
After the 2000s, a rapid increase was observed in the number of labour clauses included in free trade agreements. Labour clauses aiming to protect workers’ fundamental rights and promote labour standards, examples of which we can see in the free trade agreements signed by Turkey, can be considered a new legal tool to protect and promote labour standards in a country. On January 20, 2021, a Panel of Experts published its Report on the Proceeding Constituted under Article 13.15 of the EU-Korea Free Trade Agreement. The Panel report brought new dimensions to the discussions relating to the legal effect of labour clauses in free trade agreements. This study aims to introduce the Panel Report and show that a different legal instrument is developing for the protection of freedom of association.
Keywords : Free trade agreements, labour /social clauses, fundamental rights of workers, EU-Korea Panel Report, ILO Declaration on Fundamental Rights