자유무역협정(FTA)에 포함된 기업의 사회적 책임(CSR) 조항과 그 배경에 관한 연구: 유럽연합(EU)의 사례

This article examines why corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been included in trade agreements, focusing on regional trade agreements of the EU. The EU has been leading the international discussions and legalization of CSR and spreading its CSR-related rules to the rest of the world through its trade agreements. The reasons to incorporate CSR into trade agreements are as follows; first, the EU has developed the rule related to CSR in its legal framework by introducing and amending a series of directives and EU-sponsored projects. In this process, the European Parliament, backed by civil organizations in Europe, has been a very active supporter of linking trade and CSR. Second, as a normative power, the EU tries to spread the norms and standards to the rest of the world. Trade agreements are good instruments for this purpose and the EU wanted to ‘export’ its CSR model to its trade partners. Third, the EU's trade policy has been increasingly normative, incorporating nontraditional issues, such as labor, environment, and human right. Furthermore, the EU tries to orient its EU's trade policy toward contributing to a wider set of EU policy goals, such as the Green Deal and international commitments on labor, environment, gender, and CSR. The EU will likely continue to line its trade with CSR issues and revise the existing trade agreements with more obligations related to CSR. This movement is not simply an external pressure, but it is reasonable to view it as an international trend. Therefore, it is necessary to revise domestic laws and regulations related to CSR and to make efforts at the government level to raise awareness among companies and civil society.