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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 219-6043.
U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert B. Reich, Canadian Minister
of Labor Lucienne Robillard and Mexican Secretary of Labor and Social Welfare
Santiago Onate Laborde today jointly announced that John S. McKennirey has been
named executive director of the Secretariat of the Commission for Labor
Cooperation which is to be located in Dallas, Texas.
In making the joint announcement, Reich expressed his
pleasure, stating, "The appointment of a high-calibre individual such as Mr.
McKennirey is proof that the Commission for Labor Cooperation will be a
vibrant, active force for defending workers' rights in North America. The
United States was very pleased to accept his nomination and we look forward to
his solid leadership of this important institution."
John McKennirey was Canada's lead negotiator for the North
American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC). He was most recently director
general of staff relations and compensations for the Department of National
Revenue. His professional experience includes a three-year appointment as
director general of Policy and Strategic Analysis at Labor Canada and five
years with the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development.
McKennirey has also been research director and executive secretary to a
national task force on law and learning.
The Commission for Labor Cooperation was established when
the NAALC came into effect on Jan. 1, 1994. The NAALC is one of two parallel
agreements to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The Secretariat
will support the Commission for Labor Cooperation and will work with the
National Administrative Offices in the three NAFTA countries to implement the
agreement. The Secretariat of the Commission for Environmental Cooperation,
created by the other parallel agreement, is located in Montreal, Canada.
As chief executive officer, McKennirey will be responsible
for the establishment and operation of the Secretariat in Dallas. He is
expected to have the Secretariat operational by early April of this year. The
staff will be drawn from the three countries.
A biographical sketch of John McKennirey and background
information on the Secretariat are attached.
FACT SHEET
Biographical Sketch
John S. McKennirey
John S. McKennirey is a Canadian public servant who was
most recently Director General of Staff Relations and Compensation at the
Department of National Revenue. In that position, he was responsible for labor
relations, compensation and related policy for the largest federal government
department in Canada, with some 45,000 employees represented by five
unions.
In 1993, Mr. KcKennirey led Canada's labor delegation
during the negotiation of the North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation
(NAALC). He conducted the negotiations on behalf of the Canadian government in
addition to supporting the Chief Negotiator and the Minister of International
Trade. He was also responsible for developing the Canadian position and
undertaking the necessary consultations with the provincial and territorial
governments as well as with major business and labor organizations.
Mr. McKennirey has held a number of senior federal
positions including Director General of Federal-Provincial Relations at Human
Resources Development Canada (1993), Director General of Policy and Strategic
Analysis at Labor Canada (1990-93), and Director of Indian Taxation at the
Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (1988-90).
Mr. McKennirey holds an Honors Bachelor Degree from Brock
University in Peterborough, Ontario (1972) and a Master of Arts in Philosophy
from the University of Ottawa (1982). He has also pursued studies at the
graduate level at the University of Louvain in Belgium and McMaster University
in Hamilton, Ontario.
BACKGROUNDER
Secretariat of the Commission for Labor Cooperation, North
American Agreement on Labor Cooperation
The North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC),
signed to supplement the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), came into
effect on January 1, 1994. It provided for a trinational Commission for Labor
Cooperation which comprises a Ministerial Council and a Secretariat.
The Ministerial Council, which is composed of the
ministers responsible for labor of Canada, Mexico and the United States, is the
governing body of the Commission. Headed by an Executive Director, the
Secretariat will employ 15 staff members. The position of Executive Director is
to rotate consecutively between each Party. The appointment to the position is
for a three-year term, which may be extended for one additional three-year
period.
The functions of the Secretariat are the following:
- To assist and support the Council in exercising its functions.
- To prepare background reports setting out publicly available
information supplied by each Party on:
- - labor law and administrative procedures;
- - trends and administrative strategies related to the
implementation and enforcement of labor law;
- - labor market conditions such as employment rates, average
wages and labor productivity; and
- - human resource development issues such as training and
adjustment programs.
- To undertake studies on any matter the Council requests.
- To support working groups, evaluation committees of experts and
arbitral panels created by the Council.
- To publish periodically a list of matters resolved under Part Four
(Cooperative Consultations and Evaluations) of the NAALC.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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