BACK TO THE FUTURE - SWEATSHOP CONDITIONS ON THE MEXICO-US BORDER .1.COMMUNITY-HEALTH IMPACT OF MAQUILADORA INDUSTRIAL-ACTIVITY

Present working conditions in one of the most active areas of the maqu iladora system along the Mexico-U.S. border are reminiscent of ninetee nth-century U.S. sweatshops. This conclusion was reached after evaluat ing two separate but interrelated surveys among Mexican nationals livi ng near the Mexico-U.S. border, one of community leaders (Paper I), an d one of workers in maquiladora enterprises in the towns of Matamoros and Reynosa, Mexico (Paper II). Paper I evaluates the results of the c ommunity leaders' survey. Criteria for selection of the leaders were: level of responsibility in the community; knowledge of the industry in the region, and length of residence in the area (more than 3 years). Representatives from government, maquiladora industry management, labo r union leadership, labor union activists, and community improvement a ctivists were interviewed. Structured questionnaires with opportunitie s for open-ended answers were used by trained Spanish speaking intervi ewers. The questions covered community demographics, health care struc tures, governance of the region, knowledge of working conditions, and knowledge of environmental impact on the region and the community. Com munity leaders were ambivalent on the purported benefits of the develo pment of these types of industries in their communities. A substantial majority (21 of 25) thought that the maquiladoras brought few positiv e developments, other than creating jobs. Serious concerns about overe xtending weak social infrastructures and about environmental deteriora tion were voiced. Immediate (preventive) measures appear necessary to develop community infrastructures and to protect environmental health. (C) 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.