Stephanie Jackter
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Machiladora layoffs now hitting La Paz and the latest on the defunct Ferry.
The Gringo Gazette has a couple of interesting blips on pages 6 and 11 on these two subjects.
Machiladoras all over Mexico are closing up shop and many are moving to countries that pay even cheaper wages to their employee/slave workers. Over
250,000 jobs have gone to the Dominican Republic and other places where, instead of paying workers 7 measly dollars a day, they can be paid 1 or 2.
Although I blame a good deal of greed by many businesses and shareholders for creating the "free trade" debaucle that seems to be taking from the poor
all over the world right now and landing the $s in the pockets of only a few, I actually sympathize to some extent with the businesses that are caught
up in this vicious circle. Unless they move to a place where they can pay the cheaper wages and keep competing, they go our of business. The whole
system has turned into a monster that has a life of its own.
On the Ferries, it seems the government has taken them back from Sematur (THANK GOD!), and will be auctioning the management and renovation of them
off to the highest bidder soon. I just hope things get better. A lot of people depend on the Ferries down there. There are also plans to improve the
port of Pichilingue. Well and good as long as they don't mess with one of my favorite beaches.-Stephanie
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Stephanie Jackter
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Here's the link:
http://www.gringogazette.com/southern/november04_2002/page6/
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Braulio
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El lino bottomo.
Stephanie -
I hate to appear to be bashing you again. I understand that you're a nice, impassioned person but for me the bottom line has to be the truth.
Your first blip states one statistic and they couldn't even get that one correct.
At it's height the maquiladora industry employed about 1.5 million workers in Mexico (nationwide). It now employes about 250,000 less - that's
nationwide - not just Baja.
Working in a maquiladora is tough - but I hear that 7 dollar a day figure bandied about by people that either know nothing about the industry or who
want to deceive. They invariably fail to include that 7 dollars a day is an entry level wage paid to someone with pratically no education and does
not include other benefits like medical, transportation, access to free educaction, programs to allow workers to own their own homes, etc. While we're
throwing about figures let's try to present the reality of the situation. But yeah - it's tough.
I didn't even bother with the second blip. Referencing the Gringo Gazette for anything unrelated to tourism or the english-speaking expat community
is just silly. I''m sorry but I really feel you've wasted my time and misinformed others here.
BTW - This new-fangled forum has a feature that allows you to edit (spelling) even after the post has been made.
Take care Stephanie. Sorry.
Braulio
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Stephanie Jackter
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Nothing to apologize for at all, Braulio. I don't require you or anyone else under the sun to agree with me politicallly. It would be a total bore
if you did. I only ask that you don't go on the personal attacks that I've had to deal with so often.
In response to your comments: First, I, and the referenced article were NOT speaking solely about Baja, but the whole country. 250,000 jobs lost out
of a total of 1 and a half million (your number), is around 15 percent, I believe, of the machiladora jobs in Mexico! That's a huge number of people
out of work. And from what I've read and heard (living an hour away from Nogales and visiting there regularly), the whole city is in economic ruin
right now from the combination of the continuing influx of people looking for machiladora jobs and the concurrent flight of those jobs elsewhere. What
you see in living color in the machiladora industry is that whatever meager benefits are given by the companies that run them, can be taken away at
any time. Workers have NO RIGHTS whatsoever at machiladoras and any complaint of inhumane working conditions will get you fired and get your family
put on the streets. Workers are also purposefully turned over regularly, especially the unskilled female laborers, because the pool of potential
replacements is great and in that way, they don't have to give any kind of senority and pay raises. That seven dollars a day number is a firm average
of what machiladora workers make. There's no way around the fact that the real wage numbers are just awful. Now I've met a few machiladora workers in
Nogy, but I've yet to have one tell me about all the bennies they recieve. Maybe I'm just missing something, but what I hear is that they have to
work 70 hous a week, have no life outside of work, are struggling to maintain their families and see no other option but to take what is dished out.
This kind of control and abuse makes the hacienda system look like a tea party.
Having said that, I still have to mourn the loss of those jobs as well as the machiladora that shut down in La Paz - California Connection. I know
that one of its factories was located in a beautiful little dying mining town called El Triunfo, just south of La Paz. It is a place that has suffered
outside influence for over a hundred years. The mining industry, which petered out there early last century, left the water table of the town laced
with arsenic and little by little, almost the whole population deserted the town, leaving mainly the elderly and dying to populate a few homes in the
middle of fifty or seventy five abandoned ones. That machiladora offered some hope to a few families that they could go back to their homes and live
on their ancestral lands, but that dream has now gone dry and they will surely be forced to return to La Paz and once again abandon the homes they
love.
On the Gringo Gazette: I know it's a rag, but there is nevertheless plenty of factual information to be had out of it. I often find a fair amount of
intentional deceit in newspapers that take themselves more seriously, as well, not to speak of the sins of omission that run rampant through the
corporate owned American papers. Both the article on the California Connection closing and the taking back of the ferries from Sematur will prove to
be factually correct. I like to think I'm smart enough to separate the wheat from the chaf most of the time. And if I'm not, I have faith you will
point up those instances where I fail. By the way, what other papers do you recommend that I can access online? Can I get El Sudcaliforniano or its
competition (forget the name), on the net?-Stephanie
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Braulio
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Stephanie -
Glad you didn't take offense. I don't think we necessarily disagree politically. My issue is with people who put things out on the net that
misinform or waste other people's time.
The referenced blip states very unambiguously: "...with 250,000 Baja workers laid off ...". I don't see any way to read that as
Mexico-nationwide...I've tried to spin and bend it in my mind as I read but it's a straightforward statement which is incorrect. There are barely
250,000 in all of Baja that work for multi-national companies.
GG writers should stick to what they know best - Eddie's back at Las Rocas with Karaoke.
Actually percentage-wise there are about 25% fewer maquiladora jobs than 2 years ago. Cd. Juarez (El Paso) has probably been hardest hit. The
250,000 figure should be a lot higher - the author needs to do his homework.
If you want to delve into the topic let's put some decent references out there.
BTW - Why do you continue to spell "maquiladora" the way you do? Are you spoofing something? I'd hate there to be some humorous little thing that
I'm not getting. Actually with the new NAFTA agreement "maquiladoras" are supposed to be kaput - the word is still used but technically incorrect.
Most people in the business use "multi-nacional" or something to that effect. (now I'm splitting hairs)
Take care Stephanie.
Braulio
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Braulio
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Stephanie -
Forgot your enquiry.
Here's a link to mexican newspapers: they don't all have links.
In Mexicali I read La Cronica and La Voz. La Voz is especially good for classified ads.
In Sinaloa I read El Debate.
For national stuff I'm partial to La Jornada out of DF. Some of the others out of the DF tend to have strong political bents.
Traditional wire services in english do a pretty good job of covering Mexico. Use their search feature.
I've never been a fan of "The News".
A lot of the above is subjective on my part.
Hope that helps.
Braulio
http://www.prensaescrita.com/america/bajacalisur.php
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Stephanie Jackter
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Registered: 11-3-2002
Location: Arizona
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You know, I didn't read that article well after all. I just went back and looked at it and you sure are right. I guess I just blew right over the
error, thinking they were referring to the stats I've heard over and over about the numbers of layoffs in Mexico. As far as your criticisms, I
actually like the Gazette better than The News. The News is a slicker production, but I believe that historically, it has gotten wide distribution
because it is, on most issues, pretty namby pamby, giving a good dose of the governmentt spin instead of anything too critical so it can stay in the
good graces of those who might have the power to either shut it down or asassinate and editor or two. The Gazette, being published from the U.S., has
always seemed to straddle the edge, speaking out about corruption in places other papers might not dare. That's why I like them. Sometimes they do
have a good dose of the "superior American" idiot bias, but it's always informative to hear what dirt is going on in Los Cabos and what political
strings are being pulled in La Paz.
As far as my mispelled words, it's like I say. I just don't care about spelling as much as I should. I'll try to at least spell maquiladora
correctly from now on.
Thanks for the links. I'll look them up and see what I think. La Jornada is the other one that I was trying to think of the name of that I used to
read sometimes in La Paz.-Stephanie
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Dave
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Registered: 11-5-2002
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While there are abuses by the maquiladora industries, a large portion of the problem stems from the Mexican government and it's corrupt union
leadership.
Mexico has been treating the maquiladora industry as a cash cow by greatly increasing taxes, in some cases threefold. Also the fundamental
relationship was one of questionable moral complicity by Mexico providing cheap labor and warranting a peaceful employee relationship. Labor unrest is
squelched by companies entering into "white contracts" which effectively means paying off the unions or forming bogus unions. The workers are left out
in the cold.
It's one thing for a company to treat it's employees poorly. It's quite another for the Mexican government to abuse and disrespect it's own people.
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