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maquiladora

maquiladora

4 9.7
A factory in Mexico near the US border that assembles imported parts for export to the United States
  • noun
  • /mɑːkɪˈlɑːdəˌrə/
  • Specialized
: maquiladora
  • If you take maquiladoras and oil out, Mexico has a huge, very important trade deficit.
  • the maquiladora industry
  • maquiladora exports
  • maquiladora sector

Examples

  • The most important regional impact of maquiladoras is related to the number of jobs they create.

    Academic text (2001)
  • Hazardous waste, much of it associated with maquiladora operations, crosses the border in both directions, often multiple times.

    Academic text (2001)
  • When the maquiladora system was set up, Mexico required that the plants be near the border.

    Academic text (1998)
  • My father is American, and he owned a factory, a maquiladora, here.

  • The other source of competitive advantage is low wages, and that is where maquiladoras again come in.

    Academic text (1997)
  • There, workers' conditions in the maquiladoras are also grim.

    Academic text (2002)
  • The number of maquiladora workers producing for the U.S. market increased 14-fold, from 3,500 to 50,000.

    Academic text (1998)
  • The 2,750 maquiladoras situated in the border region are northern Mexico's most numerous and most productive operations.

    Academic text (2001)
  • Shaiken estimates that $1 billion in exports from the maquiladoras creates 106,000 jobs.

    Academic text (1994)
  • The maquiladora in Tijuana assembles electronics for export to the United States.

Synonyms

factory
vsmaquiladora
720 1.0

A building where people make goods using machines

is used mainly to assemble imported parts for export near the US border
manufacturing plant
vsmaquiladora
12 3.2

A large factory where goods are made using machines

focuses on assembling imported parts near the US border for export
manufactory
vsmaquiladora
  • Archaic
1 9.2

A large building where people make things, like a factory

is the same general production site but specific to border assembly for export
maquila
vsmaquiladora
  • Specialized
1 8.2

A factory in Mexico or Central America that assembles goods for export

is more specific to locations near the US border and US exports

Surface Forms

maquiladora singular
maquiladoras plural

Etymology

Maquiladora comes from the Spanish word maquila, which once meant a miller's 'fee' or the work done for someone else, plus the suffix -adora that makes it a place or person that does the work. So a maquiladora is a factory that assembles parts for foreign companies, which explains why these plants often sit near the US border to do work for American firms.