Mexico’s Slave Labor in Maquiladoras

1. Mexico’s Slave Labor in Maquiladoras By: Cristina Zarama, Michael Wilkens, Claire Foussard

2. Sweatshops in Mexico • Many are near the US-Mexico border. • Called “Maquila” or “Maquiladora” • Some are registered, but most are “underground” • They violate human rights • It’s very common to use indigenous people

3. What They Do • Many of these maquiladoras are factories that produce a variety of products. • Many America based companies have factories in Mexico.

4. Causes for Maquiladoras in Mexico • Cheap labor • American companies have factories located in Mexico • Products sold in the U.S. for a higher profit (“Sweatshops in Mexico”) Woman working in a maquiladora

5. Works Cited "CorpWatch : Maquiladoras at a Glance." CorpWatch : Index. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2011. <http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=1528>. "ILAB - Mexico." The U.S. Department of Labor Home Page. The United States Department of Labor, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2011. <http://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/sweat/mexico.htm>. "Sweatshops in Mexico." New Internationalist. N.p., 23 June 1998. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. <http://www.newint.org/easier-english/Garment/sweatmexico.html>. "Sweatshops." Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts . N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2011. <http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~nshah/fashioncrimes/Sweatshops.html>.

6. Effects on Slaves • Many of the workers only take the jobs in maquiladoras as a last resort. • Most end up there after being unsuccessful in crossing the US-Mexico border. • Many of the girls and women are abused. A typical maquiladora in Mexico.

7. Economic Effects • The US buys the products without checking where the products are coming from. • "Anything that discourages foreign investment is economic suicide and a political impossibility. If Americans want to help these workers, getting our government and banks to forgive Mexico's debt would be a big first step.“ (Sole-Smith, Virginia) • Many corporations and consumers benefit from modern day slavery, because the labor is cheap. • Sweatshops from California are being moved to Mexico, because of the cheap labor.

8. Maquiladoras Many of the maquiladoras are near the US border. The different types maquiladoras in Mexico.

9. Evidence of Sweatshop Slaves • 107 slaves were freed in Mexico. • Ages ranged from 14-70. • Most were suffering from dehydration, malnutrition and some had broken bones due to abuse. Others were exploited sexually. • Most of the slaves didn’t speak Spanish, because they were from indigenous areas. • 23 people were arrested for human trafficking.

10. Evidence • Nike, a company known world-wide, owns a Mexican sweatshop where the workers are put through brutal conditions • As one of the workers, Alvaro SaavedraAnzures, describes: Workers have to meet the quota of 1,000 pieces per day, or more than a piece every minute. Getting a drink of water, or using the restroom may risk their job, even in the high temperatures the shops are kept in.

11. Children in Maquiladoras • Estimated 8- 11 million children under the age of 15 working in maquiladoras today (ILAB- Mexico) • Primarily female (ILAB- Mexico) • Children are subject to harsh conditions and potentially hazardous materials (ILAB- Mexico) • Workers receive such low pay, the to send their children to work in garment factories rather than school (“Sweatshops”) Children in a maquiladora

12. American companies that have factories in Mexico: • Sony • Fisher Price • Hewlett Packard (HP) • IBM • Toshiba • Honda ("CorpWatch : Maquiladoras at a Glance.“)

13. Stats • Each shift for workers is from 8:30 AM until 8:30 PM, but if workers do not complete the number of clothes they have been told to make that day, they must work longer without any pay • On Saturdays, people must work from 8 am until 5 pm without a lunch break. • If you arrive 15 minutes late, you must work for 3 days without pay. • If you are sick for a day, you lose a weeks worth of pay

14. Stats • Girls as young as 12 and 13 work in the factory. Child labor laws are obviously ignored. • When women are hired, they are tested to see if they are pregnant. If they are pregnant, they are fired. • Workers are paid between $30 and $50 per week.

15. Stats • When workers leave the factory (at any given time) they are searched to make sure they haven't stolen anything. • The work can also be dangerous. For example, the women have no protective goggles to wear when they are sewing at their machines. Sometimes the needles break and fly up into their faces. • There is no help given to these women; they must continue working and if they leave they will lose their pay.

16. Action Plan Import regulation is the key to stopping this form of human trafficking. Monitoring and regulating the sources of goods from Mexico and preventing purchases from these Mexican sweatshops.

17. Action Plan • Squid sweatshops in Mexico are exporting to the US, while the US ignores them and buys simply because they are cheaper. If we regulate where the US can buy from, the sweatshops will be banned and will lose massive amounts of business. These squid and other kinds of sweatshops will be run down.

18. Action Plans • The second thing that needs to be done is a mass creation of jobs in Mexico. Possibly fair manufactures could replace the currently existing inhumane sweatshops. This could be easily done, if the laws are put in place, and there are willing workers.

19. Works Cited • http://www.newint.org/easier-english/Garment/sweatmexico.html • http://www.jussemper.org/Resources/Corporate%20Activity/mexicohellinmexico'smaquil.html • http://laborrightsblog.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341bf90b53ef010535d0441c970c-320wi • Sole-Smith, Virginia . " Mexico's Squid Sweatshops | The Progressive." The Progressive | Peace and social justice since 1909. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2011. <http://www.progressive.org/sole0510. • http://s3.amazonaws.com/corpwatch.org/img/original/maqpie1.gif • http://infranetlab.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/02_maquiladoras-per-state.jpg • http://newworldorderreport.com/News/tabid/266/ID/276/Mexico-City-Police-Free-107-Slave-Workers--ages-ranged-from-14-to-70-forced-to-work-16-hour-days-w-one-30-minute-break--they-were-fed-chicken-feet-and-rotten-vegetables.aspx • http://www.solunet-infomex.com/images/country_origin.gif "CorpWatch : Maquiladoras at a Glance." CorpWatch : Index. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2011. <http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=1528>. "ILAB - Mexico." The U.S. Department of Labor Home Page. The United States Department of Labor, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2011. <http://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/sweat/mexico.htm>. "Sweatshops in Mexico." New Internationalist. N.p., 23 June 1998. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. <http://www.newint.org/easier-english/Garment/sweatmexico.html>. "Sweatshops." Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts . N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2011. <http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~nshah/fashioncrimes/Sweatshops.html>. • "Nike Child Labor." Photograph. Nike Child Labor. New Mexico State University, Web. 26 Oct 2011. <http://business.nmsu.edu/~dboje/images/nike_child_labor_big.jpg>. • "Just stop it: Nike, Gap sweatshops exploit third-world citizens | The Paly Voice." Home | The Paly Voice. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. <http://palyvoice.com/node/15396>.