Industrial development in an era of structural adjustment : the growth of export informatic services in Jamaica

Based on a case study of the export informatic$ sp1$ services industry, this dissertation examines the prospects for industrial development in Jamaica in the twenty first century. It contends that the island's current strategy of neo-liberal industrial restructuring will not bring about sustained development because it embodies macro-economic reforms that are incompatible with local, cultural and structural realities. Under structural adjustment, Jamaica has embarked upon policies that have been short-term in vision, un-coordinated and subject to the demands of local and global hegemonic groups. These policies have limited the expansion of this export sector and has encouraged forms of work organisation that are deeply exploitative of labour. In the case of the informatics sector, the pressure to satisfy IMF and World Bank macro-economic restructuring requirements, together with, inadequate finance and marketing support, and technical labour, has limited the potential of the sector to become a growth catalyst. Instead of becoming an industry that provides foreign exchange earnings, jobs and technical skills, informatics in Jamaica remains low in value added content, and reliant on sweated, female, low cost labour. The current organisation of work is particularly exploitative of women and their households who provide them with support. The strain that workers and their households sustain creates a vicious cycle, because as workers find ways to resist their employers demands, the industry loses its ability to compete globally. This dissertation concludes that the future of the industry will depend on the extent to which the industry is able to: provide local and foreign firms with equal opportunities to compete in global markets; develop higher value-added services and provide workers with better opportunities for personal and occupational development. I argue that improving the skills and knowledge base of the industry's labour force represents a first step in th