Katherine TaiU.S. Trade Representative Ambassador, joined members of the ILR community for a panel discussion regarding her initiative to study the distributional effects of U.S. trade policy on workers, especially workers with disabilities, black workers and Hispanics, LGBTQ people and other underrepresented communities.

“Ambassador Tai proved that she was blazing a new trail in U.S. trade policy by meeting with faculty and outreach teams from Cornell ILR School,” said Assistant Professor Desiree LeClercq, who moderated the event. “She was generous with her time and outspoken in her thoughts.”

In her opening remarks, Ambassador Tai said, “We have re-examined who is at the table when we develop policies so that more perspectives and lived experiences are represented.”

ILR School Dean Alex Colvin joined Ambassador Tai on the panel, along with Worker Institute Executive Director Patricia Campos-Medina. Chantel ThomasAssociate Dean for Academic Affairs at Cornell Law School and Russell Weaver, Research Director at the ILR Buffalo Co-Lab.

Cornell faculty presented a litany of relevant research highlighting how workers have been marginalized and how racial inequalities have increased over time by policies and practices implemented in the public and private sectors.

“The study commissioned by the USTR from the United States International Trade Commission provides an ideal entry point for the ILR School to leverage our accumulated knowledge of international labor rights and our long-standing relationships. with marginalized worker communities to help shape fairer trade policy,” LeClercq said. “I hope that this webinar marks the beginning of a successful relationship between the ILR School and USTR in support of the Biden administration’s pro-worker agenda.