WASHINGTON - This week, Ambassador Greer launched a series of Section 301 investigations to ensure a level playing field for American workers and businesses. On March 11, Ambassador Greer initiated Section 301 investigationsinto various economies to assess potential structural excess capacity and production in manufacturing sectors. On the following day, he initiated 60 Section 301 investigationsto assess whether foreign governments have taken sufficient steps to prevent the importation of goods produced with forced labor.

Here are the top headlines:

• Reuters: US opens new unfair trade practices probe of 60 countries over forced labor
• CNBC: U.S. launches fresh Section 301 probes into 60 economies over forced-labor trade practices
• WSJ: Trump Targets Industrial Subsidies and Forced Labor in Tariff Probes
• Washington Examiner: USTR opens investigations into 60 countries over unfair trade practices
• Axios: Trump administration launches new trade investigation
• CBS News: Trump administration takes steps to impose new tariffs, announcing investigations into key trading partners
• Supply Chain Dive: Trump admin probes foreign manufacturing production, capacity
• The Hill: White House launching unfair trade investigations, rebuilding tariff pressure

The USTR-led investigations were quickly met with praise from American steelworkers, farmers, manufactures:

United Steelworkers International President Roxanne Brown:The USW welcomes the USTR's investigations into global overcapacity and forced labor, two issues on which our union has long fought as we seek to preserve workers' rights and restore fair trade. For too long, global overcapacity has plagued a broad array of manufacturing sectors, including steel, aluminum and many others, harming our members and their communities and jeopardizing our national and economic security … We must uncover those abusing workers and profiting from their labor so that we can improve working conditions for workers across the world … Workers have suffered from a broken trade system for decades. Now is the time to provide them with relief.

Steel Manufacturers Association Executive Vice President Brandon Farris:The Steel Manufacturers Association strongly applauds the U.S. Trade Representative for launching long-overdue Section 301 investigations into structural excess capacity and overproduction in global manufacturing. For years, global excess capacity has been one of the leading drivers of manufacturing job losses in the United States … This situation demands decisive action, and the USTR is right to move swiftly. The Steel Manufacturers Association looks forward to working closely with the USTR throughout this investigation to confront the excess capacity that has undermined American manufacturing and cost U.S. workers their jobs for far too long.

American Iron and Steel Institute President and CEO Kevin Dempsey:AISI applauds USTR for initiating these Section 301 investigations and for continuing to address the serious challenges posed by global structural excess capacity and unfair foreign trade practices … AISI also supports the administration's efforts to address failures to take action on forced labor practices, which not only violate fundamental human rights but also further distort global markets by allowing products made under abusive conditions to undercut responsible producers. By examining both structural overcapacity and forced labor practices, these investigations represent an important step toward restoring fair, market-oriented competition. Strong enforcement of U.S. trade laws will help ensure that American steelmakers and workers can compete on a level playing field while continuing to provide the essential materials that underpin our nation's manufacturing base, infrastructure and economic security. This is another important step by the administration towards a comprehensive policy to address the many forms of unfair trade practices that distort global trade in steel.

United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain:The UAW is glad to see the U.S. Trade Representative taking on companies and countries using wage suppression and anti-union laws. For decades, we've let companies offshore good jobs from the U.S. to countries where workers have no rights and are denied a living wage. Right now, we still have factories closing and leaving the country while the working class suffers the consequences. Instead of driving a race to the bottom, we need a trade policy that puts workers first.

Alliance for American Manufacturing President Scott Paul:Overcapacity is a serious problem … We commend the administration for initiating these investigations, which we hope will lead to meaningful action to defend American workers and manufacturers.

American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations President Liz Shuler:The AFL-CIO strongly supports the launch of USTR's investigations into global overcapacity and forced labor. For decades, countries have flooded global industrial markets in an effort to tilt the trade balance in their favor and undermine domestic producers at the expense of union workers and their jobs. The fact that forced labor is allowed to continue as part of our global supply chain is a violation of human dignity and labor rights, and undermines American competitiveness and labor, harming both the manufacturers that refuse to participate in this exploitation and the workers who lose their jobs to it. Addressing these injustices is essential to restoring fairness, equity, and a respect for workers' and human rights in the global supply chain.

Northwest Horticultural Council President Mark Powers: The Northwest Horticultural Council supports the Trump Administration's continued actions to hold trading partners accountable and ensure fair access for U.S. exporters. Many countries enjoy preferential access for their products to the U.S. market, while having denied open and fair access to U.S. apple, cherry, and pear growers for decades … The Trump administration successfully used its powerful trade leverage to secure meaningful improvements for tree fruit access in the agreements on reciprocal trade with Taiwan and Indonesia.

American Council for Capital Formation President and CEO George David Banks: The American Council for Capital Formation strongly supports USTR's initiation of Section 301 investigations into economies failing to enforce bans on forced labor imports. This bold action levels the playing field for American workers and businesses, countering unfair advantages from exploitative practices abroad.

Coalition for a Prosperous America President Jon Toomey:The Trump administration's decision to launch these investigations led by Ambassador Greer reflects a serious and long-overdue effort to address the structural forces that have hollowed out large parts of America's manufacturing base. For decades, many foreign governments have pursued industrial strategies built on subsidies, suppressed wages, state-owned enterprises, and other policies that generate massive excess production and push that surplus into global markets-a surplus that has been largely absorbed by the U.S market with devastating consequences for American producers and workers. These investigations recognize that those practices directly undermine U.S. manufacturing and investment.

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