Abstract
This chapter analyses the scope and coverage of the so-called Mode 4 in the international trade in services and especially within the framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Instead of presenting Mode 4 as another form of labour migration, the focus is on the conceptualization of Mode 4 as an instrument of multilateral trade liberalization (Betts and Nicolaïdis, 2009).1 The analysis is built upon the issue of employment market access that is argued to distinguish Mode 4 from traditional labour migration. It is proposed that for employment market access to occur, two criteria need to be simultaneously met. First, the host state’s labour laws must apply, and second, the foreign worker must occupy, in the host state, a post that could be taken up by a local worker. The normative conclusions are supported by an empirical study of the biggest service importers’ Mode 4 commitments.
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© 2015 Johanna Jacobsson
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Jacobsson, J. (2015). GATS Mode 4 and Labour Mobility: The Significance of Employment Market Access. In: Panizzon, M., Zürcher, G., Fornalé, E. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of International Labour Migration. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137352217_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137352217_4
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