ABSTRACT
These seemingly conflicting views reflect different tendencies in government policies impacting labor. Francisco Zapata writes that labor, business, and the state have interacted efficiently to control inflation, limit salary increases, and suppress strike activity, bypassing the legislature; therefore, political parties do not play the significant role they play in other national contexts on matters related to labor questions. The negotiations to join the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) decreased union control of hiring and work conditions, and payment systems were adjusted to reflect changes in productivity by replacing hourly wages by piece-rate systems in order to offer the best chance to companies in their struggle to be competitive in the international market.
