The Problem

In order to minimize their costs, thousands of American corporations outsource their production to foreign countries where environmental and labor laws are lax – or nonexistent. Many of these companies choose the maquiladoras of Mexico.

Over 1 million people (mostly young women) work in these factories, built near Mexican-American border. While NAFTA regulations and Mexico’s labor laws prevent the worst of the potential human rights abuses, its laborers work up to 75 hours a week for wages of between $1 and $2 an hour. While these wages are higher than what employees would earn elsewhere, they are hardly enough to cover the relatively high cost of living in northern Mexico. While maquiladoras pay an acceptable living wage for single women or a two-adult household, these wages are inadequate for a family with even one child.

One of the worst aspects of maquiladora-using corporations is the way they deal with the fertility of their young workers. Many companies refuse to hire pregnant women to work in their factories, and force female employees to take birth control. If a worker becomes pregnant, she is immediately fired. Left without an income, life becomes increasingly difficult for the woman and her unborn child.

Links:

• Mexico’s Maquiladoras: Abuses Against Women Workers (Human Rights Watch)
• Support Committee for Maquiladora Workers
• San Diego Maquiladora Workers’ Solidarity Network