Monday 28th April 2014, 12.30-14.30, CESI premisesNegotiations for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a trade agreement between the EU and the US, began in July last year.2014 may see the trade talks being brought to a conclusion. Despite this, there are still many unknowns regarding the agreements, with the negotiation process being opaque and exclusive of social partners. These unknowns undoubtedly raise fears over the TTIP’s impact on many issues, among them workers’ rights and the effect on SME’s.While negotiations are temporarily on hold, CESI, the European Confederation of Independent Trade Unions, U4U, Union for Unity, and UNITEE, the European-Turkish Business Confederation, thought the timing right to organise an event aiming at informing its members and the public on TTIP developments and what the trade agreement will mean in practice.Will it mean a “race to the bottom”? Will we see small and medium sized enterprises run out of business? What will be the impact on wages and working conditions? Can we even predict the impact? These questions and more need to be answered for both employers and employees to accept such an agreement.Panelists to discuss the unknowns of TTIP include:Jan Schmitz, Trade negotiator in the European Commission Jan Schmitz will put forward the case for the TTIP agreement, explaining why we need the agreement and outlining the benefits to be had from being part of such an agreement with the US.Romain Pardo, Policy Analyst at the European Policy Centre Romain Pardo will detail the biggest challenges facing the TTIP at the moment, addressing the most sensitive areas for negotiation when talks relaunch later in 2014.Paul de Clerck, Head of the Economic Justice team, Friends of the Earth Europe Paul de Clerck will put the case against the TTIP agreement, describing what is at risk, both as citizens and as workers, by signing up to this trade deal with the US.Andreas Galanakis Policy Director of the American Chamber of Commerce to the EU Andreas Galanakis will provide us with the American view on the TTIP, stressing the benefits the TTIP can bring to businesses of both sides of the Atlantic.Bernd Hüttemann, Secretary General of European Movement Germany Bernd Hüttemann, representing civil society, will moderate the event. Having previously moderated an event civil society’s role in TTIP, Mr Hüttemann is well placed to ensure lively discussions both with the panelists and with the participants.To register for the event, please send your name and organisation to contact(at)cesi.org. The deadline for registration is Wednesday 23rd April.A light lunch will be served from 12.15h.The event is jointly organised by CESI, U4U and UNITEE.