Sustainability of Whom, Sustainability of What - Section 4 - Artisans
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Transcript of Sustainability of Whom, Sustainability of What - Section 4 - Artisans
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THE SUSTAINABLE LIVING WAGE/INCOMEINTHE ARTISAN COMMUNITIES
Research about the Guatemalan economy usually does not mention the
traditional woven crafts of the Mayans communities throughout Guatemala.
Descriptions of the Guatemalan economy focus is on agriculture and
manufacturing with no inclusion of the Mayan crafts which are a constitutivedimension of the Guatemalan economy. In market after market in many parts of
the country, the colorful weavings and the numerous products that have been
made from the weavings are available in store after store, in stall after stall and
from individuals seeking to sell their products directly to you.
The Central Market in Guatemala is lined with small stalls filled with these crafts
alongside the stalls for clothing, shoes, herbs and medicinal items, foods and
household items. Truly the crafts are a means by which many earn their living.
However a review of the individual stalls quickly demonstrates that many are
selling the same items in varied colors or sizes but essentially the same items. In
this market the stalls are operated by small business men and women who buy
the crafts from the artisans.
The biggest challenges facing the artisans are:
access to markets beyond the local communities,
product development that will provide new items to sell,
guarantee of good prices for their work.
A quick internet search for Guatemalan crafts provides extensive lists of the many
groups and organizations working to provide access to markets for those who are
producing the craft items. These groups serve a key role, for without them, the
artisans would not have access to markets outside of Guatemala. These groups
can be divided into two main groups: those involved in Fair Trade and those who
are not.
The Fair Trade movement, working in partnership with artisans around the world,
seeks to raise the income of the producers through a set of specific relationships
with the artisans and their communities. Fair Trade partners have specific
relationships with specific artisans and artisan organizations. Long term
relationships and commitments are key as a means of providing artisans with
security of sales and therefore security of income. Because the purpose of Fair
Trade is the increased income and standard of living for the artisans, their families
and communities, prices are fairly negotiated.
The Fair Trade relationship between the artisans and the sellers is usually a direct
one which reduces the layers of middlemen (and women who also need to make
a profit. This means greater income for the artisans.
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For this study, we examined the role of crafts in the communities in and around
Chichicastenango. On Sundays and Thursdays, the market days in Chichi, as it
is commonly known by locals, stalls line the streets with almost everything that
anyone wanted or needed: foods, clothing, pots and pans, crafts and flowers, etc
are organized in portable stalls on specific streets so that those familiar with the
city know exactly where to find what they want. The markets draw the K'iche'Mayans of the surrounding region, as well as vendors from the Mam, Ixil,
Kaqchikel and other indigenous groups selling their crafts.
On non-market days, the streets are quiet and bare. The portable stalls that go up
the day before market days transform the streets into color and liveliness that is
difficult to imagine if you have not been there.
For this project, we focused on the Ruth y Nohemi cooperative, a project of the
National Methodist Church in Guatemala, founded in 1984.
History Of The Methodist Project Ruth and Nohemy by Rev. Diego Chicoj
Before the violence, the church of this town had a membership of 300 and a building measuring 12 x 22 yards. During the
1980s the inhabitants were threatened and persecuted, then thrown out of their community, leaving behind their houses,
land and animals. The most critical event occurred on an afternoon in 1981: the army cornered the townspeople at a site
in front of the Methodist church, which is located at the edge of the road. They then arrested about 40 peoples, tied them
up, and put them in the road ( as if they were logs ready for the fire) later, when not a soul was moving, the soldiersgrabbed this same group of people, put them inside the church and bombed it. Thus ended the membership and their
church. The army however, did not stop with that. Instead they went around the town and burned houses too.
Three years later, a very old sister invited me to see if we might get together a few of the women and children who had
been left widows and orphans. People from other churches in the area asked if they could join with us to celebrate
worship services and we said certainly. We did this for a year and afterwards they become enthused enough to conduct
their own services. In 1985 the church had 3 men, 8 women and a few children.
One afternoon which I will never forget, 2 sisters who are members of the church come to me in tears saying Pastor,
could not you help us with a few pounds of corn because we have no food for tonight? I felt a calling that we must do
something for them. Feeling that in this moment it would not be helpful just to pray for them and tell them to pray and that
God would help them. Rather, I thought how are we able to help?
The next day I went to Quetzaltenango to present the situation to the president of the church and he listened and took an
interest in their miserable situation. He asked me if only two people were in need. And I told him no. He told me it would
be better to investigate possibilities and organize the people in need because it would be unjust if we helped certain ones
and ignored the others. He asked what are we able to do? We dont give away, and even if we gave away a few dollars
to each one, it will soon be depleted and the need will continue. It would be better to provide capital to allow them to work
and thus provide income for the long term.
Guatemala endured a bloody civil
war between government soldiers,
right-wing groups (paramilitaries),
and leftist rebels that lasted 36 years
(1960-1996), the longest civil war in
Latin American history.
The tragedy of the civil war was
deeply rooted in the day to day real-
ity of the Guatemalan people. Ex-
treme poverty, illiteracy resulting in
the highest rates of incapacity for
reading and writing in the Western
Hemisphere, poor health care,
homelessness, severe agricultural
problems including the struggles of
the farm workers, the exclusion and
marginalization of the indigenous
peoples, the fragmentation of society
were some of the causes that led to
the armed conflict.
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In their relationships with the cooperative, CREA follows Fair Trade standards,
which require the following elements:
on-going, supportive relationships with the cooperative
a cooperative democratically organized with gender equality
up-front, just payment for goods assistance with access to markets
environmentally sustainable operations.
The Fair Trade system has three essential components: the artisans, the sellers,
and those who recognize the work that is being done and purchase the items for
their own use or for gifts. The components exist as a synergy, each
interdependent with the others.
I returned to the community and was surprised to find that eight people were waiting instead of just two. I asked each
them what type of help was needed. Some said they could raise pigs, chickens and sheep. Others said they could wea
and so they were given assistance according to what they could do. For example, they were given chemical fertilizer
their cornfields so that they could improve their corn harvest. The weavers, however, continued to come because on
they had finished with their work, they carried the pieces to the market but no one bought them because at this time th
were hardly any people, especially tourists, going to the market.
Then an idea occurred to me- I could make purses, shirts and book bags out of the products that the women made
organized some young orphans who needed to learn a trade, because at that time the young people were emigrating
the capital in search of work. Some found jobs but other did not, and all left their mothers in sadness because th
husbands were already gone, and now their children were far away. So we asked for some sewing machines from t
church office, and they gave us five used machines. I began to teach sewing to 9 young men and 3 young women of
village three days a week.
In 1988 the few funds we had ran out, and I felt obligated not to abandon the young people involved in the project. I spo
with people at ACAD (Central American Development Assistants) to see if they might help us get a market for the f
things we had and buy us a few additional things. This went on through 1988 and 1989, until in 1990 we finally got a lit
more aid to continues with our project.
According to the women and young people already involved in the project, there were more young people who want
learn the trade. However, we lacked sewing machines, so we asked ACAD again if it were possible to get some mo
machines. They kindly got us four sewing machines, which the young people are using today. At present we have 8 you
people working formally on the project, and 15 women weaving. The remaining young people went to work for other peo
after they learned the trade, one of whom is already an instructor
We have now bought a small piece of land especially for this project, 800 meters from the village, where our team
working and studying. Here our objective is that the ladies and young people be not merely learn a trade, but that th
also learn to read and write, and if possible get certified, for their own sense of achievement.
This conflict had had many implica
tions. More than 200.000 people d
and 50,000 were missing at the tim
of the peace agreement.
The signing of the peace agreemebetween the Government of Guate
mala and the URNG (Unidad
Revolucionaria Nacional Guatema
teca) on December 29, 1996, ende
the internal armed conflict that had
resulted in dire consequences for t
country: significant damage to the
countrys infrastructure, the loss of
precious human lives and human
rights violations of its citizens
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People often think that the entire price that is paid for an item becomes the wages
or income to the artisan. What must be taken into consideration is the artisans
cost of the supplies for the work: thread, needles, cloth, zippers, etc, and the
costs of equipment and any needed electricity. On the part of the seller in the US
or elsewhere, the cost of transportation of the crafts from the artisan to the
markets must be added to the price paid by the purchaser. In addition, if thearrangement includes on-going large orders, provision of storage and staffing
must be included in the price. Otherwise this work could not be done on any
larger scale than that of a single traveler making a purchase in one country,
carrying it home to sell and then sending the money back to the artisan. The
ultimate purpose of the price charged to the purchaser is to allow both the artisan
and the seller to recoup expenses, to achieve a sustainable living wage, and to
contribute to the development of the project. Most Fair Trade sellers are non-profit
organizations that put their after-expense profits back into the development of the
project. Their goal is to increase the market for the cooperatives.
It is possible that a cooperative is organized according to Fair Trade principles but
does not have access to enough sellers of their products who are willing to honorthe Fair Trade price commitment. In those cases, the artisans will sell their crafts
to other sellers simply as a means of earning a living.
CREA has, in addition, created a Fair Trade-Peace Trade project to work with
cooperatives to develop a self-sustainable and reproducible model that will allow
these cooperatives, and ultimately others, to adapt more effectively to changing
markets. The project includes product development and a production process that
includes the design, development, marketing and production of new products to
help ensure a more consistent flow of work. CREA has undertaken this project to
support efforts to provide employment for men as well as women, in order to
provide an alternative to joining the military, gangs, or drug dealers. Our
understanding of peace is broad based. The absence of war is not yet peace if we
do not address the systemic violence that hunger and poverty inflict.
Collecting the Data
As with the interviews conducted with the maquila workers, our team interviewed
the artisans in their homes or work areas. All the interviews were voluntary. Aida
introduced us and the project and why we were doing the project. Of course, all
the interviews were in Spanish.
Pricing was done in Chichicastenango even though the artisans live in villages
around the city. The city is the main market where they do their shopping.
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The Fair Trade-Peace Trade project builds on the Fair Trade work CREA has been doing for the past 6+ years focus
on coffee, tea, cocoa and crafts from several countries. It focuses on building on-going relationships with cooperatives t
are finding places for young men so that they have alternatives to violence as a way of supporting themselves and th
families. In the past, most of the cooperatives have focused on women. This needs to continue as the development
ways of including young men is developed, expanded and maintained.
The seed for the Fair Trade-Peace Trade project was planted during a conversation with our translator and driver duri
one of the trips that was part of the Women to Women Project in Haiti. In this project, we brought women from the US
meet with women in Haiti who were trying to start small businesses. The aim was to have each of the US women spons
one or more of the Haitian women.
During a conversation with Dumond, our driver and translator with whom I had worked on other projects in Haiti, he ask
why there were no parallel projects for men. His reasoning was as follows: At that point, the job choices for men in Ha
were few: the militia, the police, the macoutesall part of the system of violence operating in Haiti. Despite frequent
telling of our conversation, I have never been able to find anyone interested in the project for men. But the seed of an id
was planted.
Within the project, CREA is working with cooperatives in El Salvador, Guatemala and the Philippines. In the coming ye
we hope to expand the project to Bangladeshi and Palestinian cooperatives.
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PROCESSINGTHE DATAFORTHE ARTISANS
As with the maquilas, spreadsheets were created for each of the pricing
categories. The data was then entered into the spreadsheet with separate
columns for each of the locations where pricing was done. The same was done
for the data from the interviews.
For each item in each category, we the calculated the high, low and average
prices and then converted the average prices to minPP.
Monthly Cost Weekly CostCost in minPP per Week
at Minimum Wage
Rent orParallel Cost*
Workers live oncommunity land
Workers live oncommunity land
Workers live oncommunity land
Electricity Q 30.13 Q 6.95 70 minPP
Cooking Fuel Q 116.67 Q 26.92 269 minPP
Transportation Q 24.80 Q 5.72 57 minPP
Telephone Use Q 87.50 Q 20.19 202 minPP
Total Q 259.10 Q 59.78 598 minPP
*Many of the artisans pay no rent because they live on their own land
Housing and Related Costs in Chichicastenango and Nearby Villages
Monthly Cost forFamily of Four
Weekly Cost forFamily of Four
Cost in minPP per weekat Minimum Wage
Potable Water Not available Not available Not available
Non-Potable Water Q 12.00 Q 2.76 28 minPP
Total Cost Q 2.76 Q 2.76 28 minPP
Water
Monthly Cost Weekly CostCost in minPP per week
at Minimum Wage
Adult Man Q 687.93 Q 158.76 1,588 minPP
Adult Woman Q 653.73 Q 150.86 1,509 minPP
Child / Infant Q 632.67 Q 146.86 1,469 minPP
Total Costs forFamily of Four
Q 2,607 Q 603.34 6,033 minPP
Food
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Monthly Cost Weekly CostCost in minPP per week
at Minimum Wage
Adult Man Q 73.49 Q 16.96 170 minPP
Adult Woman Q 107.34 Q 24.77 248 minPP
Child / Infant Q 86.58 Q 19.98 200 minPP
Total Costs for
Family of Four
Q 353.99 Q 81.69 817 minPP
Clothing
Monthly CostPer Child
Weekly Costper Child
Cost in minPP per weekat Minimum Wage
Total N/A N/A N/A
Education
Monthly Cost Weekly CostCost in minPP per week
at Minimum Wage
CommonHouseholdMedicines
Q 63.13 Q 14.57 146 minPP
Savings AgainstIllness and
Loss of Work
Q 26.00 Q 6.00 60 minPP
Total Q 89.13 Q 20.57 206 minPP
Healthcare
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Monthly Cost Weekly CostCost in minPP per week
at Minimum Wage
Housing andRelated Costs
Q 259.10 Q 59.79 598 minPP*
ReplacementClothing
Q 354.04 Q 81.69 817 minPP
Non-Consumables Q 200.00 Q 46.15 462 minPP
Food Q 2,614.47 Q 603.34 6,033 minPP
Potable Water N/A N/A N/A**
Non-PotableWater
Q 12.00 Q 2.76 28 minPP
Education N/A N/A N/A
Health Q 89.13 Q 20.57 206 minPP
Total Q 3,528.74 Q 814.30 8143 minPP
Sustainable Living Wage/Income for Artisans
* This number represents the costs of light, fuel, etc. necessary even when rent does not need to be paid.
* Potable water was not available in any of the hamlets where the artisans live.
THE SUSTAINABLE LIVING WAGEFORTHEARTISANSECTOR
How are we to understand the data presented?
f the average workweek is 44 hours according to Guatemalan Labor Law, then workers earn
2640 minPP each workweek.
(44 hours x 60 minutes per hour = 2640 minPP)
For a family of four, the Sustainable Living Wage standard would require a weekly income of Q. 814.30. On a monthly basis, the in-come required would be Q3,528.74.
CALCULATINGTHE SUSTAINABLE LIVING WAGEFORTHE ARTISANS
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