Are all Dominican Lousy Workers "Vagos" and Why?

ERICKXSON

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Dec 24, 2002
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I would like to hear from the business owners what is you opinion, i've been reading on several Dominican Newspapers that a Danish Cacao grower currently living in here in the DR gave an interview to (Dorthe.Lonstrup@pol.dk) (THE REPORTER) an interview in which he expressed his discontent with Dominican labor calling the country a JUNGLE OF LAZY PEOPLE.
 

Dolores1

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May 3, 2000
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If Dominicans were vagos, the free zone manufacturing industry would not have been so successful here. Free zone managers say that Dominicans are one of the most industrious and hard working people in the area. During interviews with several, I remember how Dominicans were praised compared to Mexican workers, and that was one of the reasons why this country retained several of its manufacturing centers despite the competition Mexico offered after the signing of NAFTA with the US.

When reading the Spanish translation of this article, I noticed that the Danish farm owner comments he has employed Haitians in his farm, reason simply being because these are willing to take lower wages, given their options for finding work in Haiti. If he were paying attractive wages, then Dominicans would be attracted to the farm work. Simple economics, not a matter of being lazy or not. Same applies to Dominicans who migrate to the US. No one doubts their industriousness there, when they take up jobs US citizens don't care to do either for the same economic reasons.

Another consideration... have been reading "Goethe in Italy" and the observations he makes about northerners versus those who live in the South (namely Naples). He points out the simple truth that northerners need to be more industrious because they have to prepare for the winter. Those who live in the South need less to plan ahead -- the climate is pretty much the same year round -- and can be more relaxed about life.
 

Oche

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Jan 6, 2004
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How lame of this dane to have judged the dominican republic so harshly, it appears that he has forgotten that he was in a third world country...Keep it real...what you see is what you get, you can't expect to be at european standards. If he ever settles down in any tropical setting i sincerely hope his plantation gets pillaged and his properties robbed just as pirates would have done 300 hundred years ago to any european merchant.
 

simpson Homer

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Nov 14, 2003
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How many Dominican having 3 kids, paying transportation, buying furniture for the house, I mean the only one working at home for less than RD$4,000. So badly we can't even safe money.

This barbarazo is able to call Dominican "vagos"
Have you ever see guys saling cocos over the streets just imaging how far this guy have to walk to get $100 pesos we should ask to this guy if he is able to do must work than any Dominican does.

Just go to Santo Domingo to Km9 at 8:00am you will see all the people. I guess 85% are going to work

Homer Simpson
 

Guillermo P?rez

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Feb 13, 2004
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Wait a minute... this whole incident got cleared up... the guy's translator (there are not that many qualified DANISH translators here as you might guess) made a mistake... this got clarified on newspapers and the media.
 

AnnaC

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Jan 2, 2002
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Guillermo P?rez said:
Wait a minute... this whole incident got cleared up... the guy's translator (there are not that many qualified DANISH translators here as you might guess) made a mistake... this got clarified on newspapers and the media.


Guillermo, look at the dates before posting. The last post was dated 01/08/04. That's over a month ago now.
 

Guillermo P?rez

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Feb 13, 2004
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Oh thank you...

I did not see... however it might be good to clarify that after all, because it was not big news... and many people might have read this thread without knowing this issue was resolved.

But thanks... this date thing happens to me a lot.
 

Jon S.

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Jan 25, 2003
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As another poster with plenty of experience working with other Dominicans said, cold weather makes for some hard-working people while tropical weather with lots of vegetation makes for some lazy-a$$ people since they have easy access to fruits and food. It's logical that the weather plays a big role in shaping people's work ethic. However it doesn't mean that all Dominicans are like that, and I say that due to my own experiences with other Dominicans while I lived there.
 

simpson Homer

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Nov 14, 2003
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There are Vagos every where

IN MY PERSONAL OPINION

there are vagos every where but, this is my question will an American, French, German, Italian ok from any of those big countries would work in the Dominican Republic for US2.50 a day?

Fruits and weather ? I don't think that have to see if Dominican are "Vagos or not" in the Dominican Republic there is not welfare, that's mean if you don't work = you don't eat.

In the Dominican Republic if you are 60 years old and you don't have your own money or business don't expect the goverment will give you support, that's mean that you see many elder dominicans and younger dominicans working.


Homer
 

Texas Bill

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Feb 11, 2003
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I think there are several features of Dominican society that should be explored by the observer before he/she makes any generalizations about this society.

1) The Dominican Republic is primarily an agrarian society, allbeit the tourist industry is making inroads in the economic overview.

2) The "Free Zones" represent industries that are, for the most part, populated by "foreign" investors and therefore represent a more stable income environment to the general public; hence workers tend to seek employment in those environs.

3) The wage scale is set by the competitive forces within the country and not by the "free Zone" employers. Look at the indigenous employers as an example of average wage scales for the different areas of employment. These corporations/businesses that are home grown are as guilty of surpressing the wage scale as the "free Zone" employers.

4) There are workers (individuals who are self-employed) who will render excellent work for the wages offered, yet there are individuals within the same field who will not/cannot render the same exchange.

5) Evidently, indigenous Technical Schools do not teach beyound the basics of a particular discipline in that they omit the necessity for the "cleanup" phase of the work done. Either that, or the individual doesn't consider such to be an essential part of the job completion.

My personal experiences have resulted in my giving specific instructions in advance of any work to be done in that those instructions include the element of requiring the individual to render the work space clean and neat upon completion of the work performed. If the technician refuses, or demures, I don't pay until that is done.

So, I think that the quality of work one gets is dependent upon the instructions given up front and the degree of compliance to those instructions.
We must remember that the standard expected must be clear and not assumed to be as we would expect in another environment.

Texas Bill
 

Karl

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Jan 1, 2002
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Lazy, hmmm, i dont know about that. The guys on the street corners looking to make change, the beach vendors, the shoe shine kids, the motoconchos flying around, and of course, the hookers all seem like energized workers to me.
 

MrMike

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Mar 2, 2003
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Very simple: opening a business in the DR is cheap and easy - but all the responsibility for making or not making money falls on the owner/operator. The DR is full of mom and pop type businesses that do not make much but do sustain the families that operate them.

Generally then when a Dominican goes out looking for work thay are really hoping they can get paid for doing little or nothing, and maybe as a backuo plan work long enough to get a christmas bonus and dissappear, or get fired and sue for severance.

Dominican workers are not lazy when they can see a clear connection between effort and benefits, they will not fall for dangling carrots or a "feeling of satisfaction from a job well done". Unfortunatle local labour laws make it dangerous to compensate this way, so it generally works out best to just slowly sort through the long lines of applicants until you find a few jewels and nurture them as well as you can.
 

samiam

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Mar 5, 2003
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"No naci pa' trabaja' por que el trabajo para mi es un enemigo"
A line from "El Negro del Batey" a classic Dominican Folklore song.

I needn't say more