Three essays on international labor standards

The globalization of economies has made international labor standards a more relevant issue. We live in a world where production is being restructured and internationalized: developing countries are now producing an increasing share of the world's manufactured exports. As international production has been transformed over the last few decades, so has the international division of labor. This phenomenon has increased competitive pressures among countries.;The effect of international labor standards on trade performance; the growth of output; and human capital or technological innovation investments, credit market constraints, and openness on child labor are investigated in three essays. The measures of labor standards are based on the core labor standards defined in the International Labor Organization's Declaration of Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. They include work injuries that reflect working conditions, strikes and lockouts, and child labor, which is given by the labor force participation of children 10 to 14. The analysis is based on a panel of up to 112 countries for all or part of the period 1969 to 2004.;In the first essay, I examine the relation between higher labor standards and export performance and find that a safer work environment and the guarantee of the right to strike are associated with better trade performance.;The debate on globalization has also centered on the discussion of the elimination of exploitative child labor and possible policies to bring about this end. In the second essay, I investigate whether the lack of human capital investment or technological innovation affect the prevalence of child labor. The results shed light on the positive effects that investments in human capital, financial development, openness, and technological innovation have on the reduction of child labor. For richer countries with higher living standards, raising international labor standards can accompany improvements in productivity and economic performance. However, for poorer countries, these standards could entail significant costs and hinder economic development. In the third essay, I identify whether more stringent labor standards adversely affect economic growth. The results suggest that higher labor standards are associated with better trade performance as well as higher economic growth.