Sweating it in the Brazilian garment industry - Korean and Bolivian immigrants and global economic forces in Sao Paulo

In São Paulo, Brazil, in the neighborhoods of Brás, Parí, and Bom Retiro, undocumented Bolivian immigrants work for long hours in primarily Korean- and Bolivian-owned clandestine garment workshops for little more than food and lodging. Koreans and Bolivians have migrated to Brazil to become involved in the garment industry. The number of Bolivian migrants to São Paulo has continued to increase in spite of the unemployment rate of 19 to 20 percent for the past few years. I shall examine this situation, exploring the history of Korean and Bolivian migration to Brazil and the relationship between sweatshops and the industrial restructuring associated with economic globalization. © 2004 Latin American Perspectives.