In this age of globalization, countries and corporations are under increasing pressure to adopt and follow international labor standards. This book provides the most thorough empirical assessment to date of the impact of international regulation on labor standards and conditions, and critically analyzes the common race-to-the-bottom view that globalization and international competition can only further degrade labor standards. The authors examine current standards and regulations, along with recent proposals to compel developing countries to adopt labor standards. They also consider other mechanisms for advancing labor conditions, such as lowering barriers to migration, increasing foreign aid, and encouraging more rapid economic growth. In addition, the book presents a complete description and appraisal of current voluntary corporate codes of conduct, and concludes with a detailed evaluation of the change in labor conditions in Mexico since the adoption of more open trade policies in 1986.

This book explains how three major mechanisms of globalization international trade, international migration, and the activities of multinational companies have altered working conditions and labor rights around the world during the late 20th century. Drawing on analyses of a database on international labor conditions assembled for this project and a growing research literature on globalization and labor conditions, the book finds that trade, migration, and multinational companies are associated with improvements in world labor conditions.

Electrochemical Detection in HPLC: Analysis of Drugs and Poisons is the first monograph devoted to the application of this mode of analysis to the assay of exogenous compounds such as drugs in biological fluids and associated areas. The introductory chapters provide information on basic electrochemistry and HPLC-ED, and on trouble-shooting. The specialized area of thiol analysis is also discussed in detail. Salient practical details of published applications of the technique in analytical toxicology and related areas are provided in a standard format. Alternative techniques are suggested throughout. The emphasis is on the analysis of exogenous compounds, although catecholamines and other endogenous species are discussed in so far as they may be used as drugs. The practical nature of this book will make it useful to professionals working in the field. It will also be of benefit to analysts wishing to use HPLC-ED in the analysis of biological samples for analytes not specifically covered in the volume.