Close on the heels of the decision of the European Union (EU) to withdraw preferential tariff concessions to Sri Lanka’s apparel industry, the United States has announced that it will review trade concessions granted to island nation under its Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) affecting 116 million US dollars of goods exported by the island.While the EU’s decision is based on its report about the perceived failure of Sri Lanka to conform to international conventions on human rights, the US move is based on a petition seeking review of trade tariff concessions on workers rights.The US has made it known that the decision to review does not mean it has made up its mind to withdraw the concessions. EU last week had set July 1 as the deadline for an undertaking from the Sri Lankan Government to fulfill 15 conditions including release of all the LTTE suspects under custody of the military. Colombo has rejected the offer and the EU concessions to the tune of US Dollar 150 million would no longer be available from August 15.A statement of US embassy in Colombo said that under the American GSP system preferential duty-free treatment is given for over 3,400 products from 131 designated countries including Sri Lanka."Products covered under the GSP program include: machinery, electrical goods, chemical products, agricultural products, jewellery and much more," the US embassy said in a statement. "Most textiles and apparel are not eligible for preferential benefits under the program."It said that the American Federation of Labour and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), an American trade union, had petitioned against the concessions in 2008 asking for a review of worker rights in Sri Lanka. The US had decided to accept the petition for a review.The statement said countries must ensure that internationally recognized worker rights including the right of association, right to organize and bargain collectively, and a prohibition of compulsory labour is in place to quality for GSP benefits.Other criteria included measures against child labour, and occupational safety and health, work hours, minimum wages and working conditions.The statement said that there will be a public hearing, likely to be held in August to discuss the worker rights issues raised by the AFL-CIO petition and the Government of Sri Lanka will be invited to participate in the hearing. Before the hearing, the United States and Sri Lankan government will engage in a dialogue on any areas of concern with respect to worker rights.