• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Geography / What Is a Maquiladora, How Did Maquiladoras Originate, and What Does the Word Maquiladora Mean In Spanish?

What Is a Maquiladora, How Did Maquiladoras Originate, and What Does the Word Maquiladora Mean In Spanish?

April 29, 2020 by Karen Hill

Maquiladoras are manufacturing plants that assemble parts made elsewhere to produce items such as electronic equipment, clothes, auto parts, and appliances.

They are located in northern Mexico, mostly within a few miles of the U.S. border.

About 1 million Mexicans work in about 3,800 maquiladoras, which are owned primarily by U.S., Japanese, and European companies.

Most of the workers are young women between the ages of 14 and 20 who are generally paid less than $2 an hour to work 10-hour days, 5 or 6 days a week.

These plants take advantage of cheap labor costs in Mexico and easy access to U.S. trade routes.

The Mexican Government launched the Maquiladora Program, to help solve the problem of rising unemployment along the border.

The unemployment was a result of the termination of the Bracero Program, which allowed allowed Mexican agricultural workers to work legally in the US on a seasonal basis.

The word maquiladora or maquila, is Spanish in origin, and refers to the practice of millers charging a maquila, or “miller’s portion” for processing other people’s grain.

Related Facts

  • Which Explorers First Explored the Continents of the World?
  • Where did the Eiffel Tower come from and How did Gustave Eiffel build the Eiffel Tower in France?
  • Where does Vanilla Come From and Why is Vanilla so Expensive?
  • What was the European Age of Exploration?
  • How did the ancient Egyptians build the Great Pyramid at Giza?
  • Who Invented the First Car and Where Did Cars Come From?

Filed Under: Geography

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « How Big Is Mexico Compared With the United States and How Many People Live In Mexico?
Next Post: Why Does Mexico City Suffer From So Much Air Pollution and What Causes the Poor Air Quality In Mexico City? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy