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Nafta Essay

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NAFTA NAFTA is the North American Free Trade Agreement. “Implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) began on January 1, 1994” (USDA). NAFTA includes United States of America, Canada and Mexico. “This agreement will remove most barriers to trade and investment among the United States, Canada and Mexico” (USDA). The agreement helped end tariffs on goods and services. “In Mexico, there is a saying: “Without corn, there is no country.” Under NAFTA, tariff-free imports of subsidized corn, wheat and other agricultural products from the United States have undercut Mexican farmers’ ability to make a living. The “free trade” pact is forcing Mexican farmers who do not benefit from government subsidies to compete against …show more content…

This in turn takes American jobs away and raises the unemployment rate in the U.S because of jobs being sent to Mexico for cheaper labor and materials. “These same corporations have entered into massive farming ventures outside the U.S. and use NAFTA to import cheaper agricultural products back into this country, further undermining the small farmer in the U.S.” (Project Censored). This in turn kills rural farmers in the U.S. because they cannot compete with the prices set by the other big companies because of the cheaper labor in Mexico. They are also able to use chemicals and pesticides that you cannot use in the U.S. “Under NAFTA, there has been an increase in maquiladora jobs, particularly along the border in northern Mexico. A maquiladora, or maquila, is a factory that assembles or manufactures imported materials for export to other countries” (Trade Stories). Maquiladora’s help keep foreign investors there since they are able to keep their labor cheap. This in turn keeps prices down and helps them maximize profit from the money they save on labor. Working conditions are not good Maquiladora’s. Maquiladora’s are not good for people in Mexico. Employees are paid very little. “The minimum wage for this work is 54 pesos a day, which is $4 U.S.” (Trade Stories). Companies are allowed to move in company equipment and supplies, to set up there

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