But failure to strikea any deal would have put at risk not just what would would be the biggest free-trade deal of its kind in over a decade, but also the stalled global trade talks known as the Doha Round, which are being held under the auspices of the World Trade Organization.
Employers and trade unions are set to hold a new round of talks on a potential deal later this week, but remain at odds over how to strikea balance between business demands for more flexibility and union stress on job security.
During this week when there's been a lot of labor news - starting with the big strikeat Chrysler that lasted all of six hours before ending with a labor deal - let's take a look at labor unions - trade unions in particular - in a very different country, Egypt.