It's the long arm of the law.
When the North American Free Trade Agreement was signed into law conservatives applauded that it would open up the forces of economic powers from Mexico that were previously running underground.
Liberals said that NAFTA spelled the end of domestic work for Americans.
Of course, neither of the extreme views became reality.
What did become reality, however, is that Mexican firms sending employees into the United States became subject to the same workers' compensation laws that domestic employers are subject to - a real leveling of the playing field - at least according to a unanimous Arizona Court of Appeals panel opinion.
The court's decision in Porteadores Del Noroeste S.A. v. Industrial Commission of Arizona, No. 1 CA-IC 12-0038 held that the North American Free Trade Agreement did not pre-empt Arizona's workers' compensation statutes and that Porteadores del Noroeste could face liability in Arizona for the additional compensation that one of its workers, Adan Valenzuela, claimed he was due.
Valenzuela worked for Porteadores as a driver,...
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