No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeArchiveTextile Industry Reports Layoffs

Textile Industry Reports Layoffs

TEXTILE industry leaders used theannouncement of 400 layoffs by TextileraVF, the Costa Rican operation of Lee andWrangler, as an opportunity to reiteratethe need for the passage of the CentralAmerican Free-Trade Agreement with theUnited States (CAFTA) to avoid futurejob losses.“The world has become much morecompetitive for the textile industry,” saidMiguel Schyfter, president of the NationalAssociation of Textile Industry Exporters,last week in reference to the recent liftingof textile quotas that regulated apparelexports from China and India.The quotas, put into place in 1974 toprotect textile industries in Europe andNorth America from Third-World competition,were later declared to be a hindranceto free trade by the World TradeOrganization (WTO). The gradual phasingout of the quotas began in 1995 andended Jan. 1 (TT, Jan. 7, 2005).Schyfter and other leaders said thisnew wave of competition, combined withdoubt over the future of CAFTA, couldswamp Costa Rican textile exporters andcause foreign firms to dismantle theiroperations here.Those present at last week’s pressconference targeted President AbelPacheco, who refuses to send CAFTA tothe Legislative Assembly until the assemblyreforms the tax code, as a majorobstacle to Costa Rica’s successful economicfuture.Marco Vinicio Ruíz, a business executiveand former president of the Union ofPrivate-Sector Chambers and Associations(UCCAEP), said Pacheco’s position is“wrong, with all due respect.”He added that Pacheco is “well-intentioned…but badly advised,” and went onto suggest that pressure from workers’unions that oppose the trade agreementhas swayed the President’s opinion ofCAFTA.The 400 layoffs announced Jan. 20mean a total of 750 textile workers havebeen fired over the past year, according toa statement from the textile association.Because the textile industry in CostaRica provides approximately 15,000 jobsin direct employment and 5,000 in indirectemployment, the prospect of additionallosses could drive up poverty rates,industry leaders argued.

Trending Now

Panama Canal Warns of Traffic Decline as Economic Uncertainty Grows

The Panama Canal will take in about $400 million less in the next fiscal year due to a drop in ship traffic caused by...

Guatemala Prisons Erupt in Violence With Guards and Workers Taken Hostage

Gang members rioted this Friday in two prisons in Guatemala and took several guards and civilian employees hostage, a week after uprisings in which...

Costa Rica’s Sibö Chocolate Wins Bronze at Int’l Awards

Chocolate Sibö once again stood out at the International Chocolate Awards, the largest fine chocolate competition based in New York. The Costa Rican brand...

Fan Violence in Latin American Football Spurs Debate on Security and Culture

Images of a fan jumping from the stands to escape a beating as bottles, rocks and seats fly through the air at a game...

Mexico Battles Wildfire Damage with Drone-Based Reforestation

Authorities in the state of Michoacán, in western Mexico, are using drones to scatter seeds from the air in an effort to reforest hundreds...

Former Costa Rican President Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Faces Trial

Miguel Ángel Rodríguez, who served as Costa Rica’s president from 1998 to 2002, returned to court on today, to face charges in the so-called...
Avatar
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica