BajaNomad

Workers Take Action as Mexico Is Sucked Into Economic Crisis

BajaNews - 3-20-2009 at 01:52 PM

http://labornotes.org/node/2137

By Dan La Botz

"According to the Red Maquiladora Network, in Tijuana, the effects of U.S. belt-tightening are clear: maquilas that make furniture and televisions have been hardest hit. Companies are laying off, cutting wages, cancelling company buses, and taking workers out of the public health system. With long lines of workers looking for work, companies are now requesting middle or high school diplomas before hiring.

"Official figures say 25,000 jobs were lost in Tijuana before December 2008. At Sony, one of the biggest maquilas in Tijuana with more than 9,000 employees, workers have been put on four-day weeks; at RCA, three days. The city is choked with laid-off workers who’ve started street businesses with their small severance payments."

Dave - 3-21-2009 at 04:55 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BajaNews
With long lines of workers looking for work, companies are now requesting middle or high school diplomas before hiring.


When times were good and not many needed a job that paid 100 pesos per day it was OK to hire people without diplomas. Now they need smart folks.

Makes sense to me. :rolleyes:

Woooosh - 3-21-2009 at 09:43 AM

Last year they surveyed the TJ police and found 15% had only a grade school education. Maybe they could start there.

CaboRon - 3-22-2009 at 09:57 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Woooosh
Last year they surveyed the TJ police and found 15% had only a grade school education. Maybe they could start there.


I have found the great majority of the police here are illiterate ....

oldlady - 3-22-2009 at 12:30 PM

:wow: That's a lot of police encounters.

k-rico - 3-22-2009 at 01:02 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by CaboRon
Quote:
Originally posted by Woooosh
Last year they surveyed the TJ police and found 15% had only a grade school education. Maybe they could start there.


I have found the great majority of the police here are illiterate ....


Did you administer a reading and writing test?

In Mexico from the CIA factbook:

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91%
male: 92.4%
female: 89.6% (2004 est.)

http://www.indexmundi.com/mexico/literacy.html

SOS

[Edited on 3-22-2009 by k-rico]

Woooosh - 3-22-2009 at 01:19 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by k-rico
Quote:
Originally posted by CaboRon
Quote:
Originally posted by Woooosh
Last year they surveyed the TJ police and found 15% had only a grade school education. Maybe they could start there.


I have found the great majority of the police here are illiterate ....


Did you administer a reading and writing test?

In Mexico from the CIA factbook:

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91%
male: 92.4%
female: 89.6% (2004 est.)

http://www.indexmundi.com/mexico/literacy.html

SOS

[Edited on 3-22-2009 by k-rico]


The 91% score makes Mexico number 103 on the literacy list. Cuba has 99.8, and the USA 99%.

[Edited on 3-22-2009 by Woooosh]