Abstract

LUDMER, Gustavo. How many workers manufacture the clothes sold in La Salada and Flores? Exploratory exercise for November 2018. Estud. trab. [online]. 2023, n.65, pp.62-89. ISSN 0327-5744.

In Argentina, approximately two thirds of the garments are manufactured and marketed through two large informal wholesale circuits: La Salada and Flores. Tax evasion and non-registration of labor relations make difficult any attempt to quantify the industrial employment generated; Official statistics ignore the phenomenon of informal employment in the sector, while socio-demographic surveys underestimate it. This research takes up a line inaugurated by Dewey (2014) who, based on surveys and interviews with wholesalers of La Salada, estimated industrial employment in the manufacture of garments sold there for July 2013, but performing calibrations to the original methodological design, updating the calculation for November 2018 and extending the exercise for the Flores circuit. The ultimate goal is to achieve a more accurate and updated estimate of employment in both circuits, which will improve understanding of its importance in the Argentine clothing market. Additionally, it seeks to estimate a minimum scenario for informal and total employment in this entire industry. The results indicate that the manufacture of clothing sold in La Salada during November 2018 involved the work of 119,700 employees, while that sold through Flores, another 94,600. Of those 211,700 total workers, it is estimated that around 193,000 were in informal employment.

Keywords : La Salada; Flores; Informal employment; Apparel manufacturing.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )