Editing Economy of Guatemala (section)

==Maquilas==

Among the most important factors in Guatemala's economy are the significant number of Korean-owned [[maquila]] factories in the highlands of Guatemala. Korean entrepreneurs have adopted a buyer-driven [[commodity chain]] process that depends on the existence of a large labor force, low [[Capital (economics)|capital]] investment and low skills. Korea presents itself to Guatemalan industry and to Guatemalan workers by means of subcontractors responsible for delivering finished orders to multiple buyers, mostly located in the United States. Buyers include Macy's and JCPenney and brands such as Liz Claiborne, OshKosh and Tracy Evans.

The first industries began in 1980s. At first, workers were very interested in the new jobs in the factories, because they offered the opportunity to transition to what was seen as a new and modern world, away from agricultural work. However, in the factories, workers' backs hurt, because they sat for many hours on backless benches in front of sewing machines. Workers would usually enter the plant at 7:00&nbsp;a.m. and take a 1-hour break for lunch at noon. They were expected to work until 7:00 or 8:00pm. About 70% of the workers in macula factories were female. Years later, there was a huge [[turnover (employment)|turnover]]. Workers started to leave the maquila factories for reasons including stress, bad treatment, poor payment, etc.<ref>
{{cite journal
|last1=Goldin
|first1=Liliana
|title=From Despair to Resistance: Maya Workers in the Maquilas of Guatemala
|journal=Anthropology of Work Review
|date=7 December 2014
|volume=33
|issue=1
|pages=25–33
|doi=10.1111/j.1548-1417.2012.01074.x
}}</ref>

The legal framework as of 2024 is the ''Law for the Promotion and Development of Export Activities and Maquilas'' aimed mainly at the apparel and textile sector and at services exporters such as call centers and business processes outsourcing (BPO) companies. The government grants investors in these two sectors a 10-year income tax exemption. Additionally there is an exemption from duties and value-added taxes (VAT) on imported machinery and equipment and a one-year suspension of the same duties and taxes on imports of production inputs, samples, and packing material.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2023-investment-climate-statements/guatemala/ | title=Guatemala }}</ref>
{{Further|topic=the first union to form in the maquila sector|Sitracima}}