Informal Cities: Peruvian Migration, Textile Workshops and Urban Space in Argentina

MAGLIANO, MARIA JOSÉ; PERISSINOTTI, MARIA VICTORIA

SOCIOLOGIA DEL LAVORO

Franco Angeli

Año: 2017 p. 89 - 105

0392-5048

The article is based on a qualitative study which analyzes the articulation between textile workshops, one of the main contributors in Peruvian migrant?s insertion in the labor market in Argentina; and the specific way of inhabiting urban spaces configured by this productive process. We argue that the textile workshop represents an interesting case to study the relationship between production, reproduction and space in a peripheral location marked by a high presence of migrants. In Argentina textile industry, turned into a «migration labor activity» during the last decades, has become a paradigm of labor informalization and instability. In this context, we show how informalization allows local brands to reduce costs and increase profits within a broader supply chain. We also highlight that this same process compels textile migrant workers to rely upon the economic potential of community resources, within a framework of specific forms of labor insertion of Peruvian migrants in the territory.