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Unemployment Rises in World's 'Banana Capital' |
February 2009, Bananalink
Unemployment figures have more than doubled in Machala, Ecuador over the last year. The city known as the “world's
banana capital” had an unemployment rate of 3.5% in 2007. According to latest survey this figure has soared to more
than 8.7%.
There are groups of people on the main road into the city waiting for many hours to be hired. There used to be only
a few, but nowadays they are lined up all along the roadside.
Unemployment has increased for several reasons, but opinions differ as to which are the most important. For the
president of El Oro Chamber of Commerce, Angel Pulla, the main culprit is a package of labour law reforms affecting
plantation employment, notably the ban on sub-contracting workers, a practice that used to be the norm in this area.
He also notes that some plantations have simply closed down.
The El Oro Banana Producers' Association (ABO) has a different point of view: for them the problem is the slow-down
in world trade, meaning some companies have decided to dismiss their employees. The producers also blame the low
price of the fruit over a long period, leading many producers to the conclusion that banana production is no longer
profitable.
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