Reading Argument Evidence Critique

El empleo y la - Main theme: How the economic system imposed in

desigualdad en the Canary Islands hasn’t made the condition
las sociedades: relating to inequality any better and how it needs to
el caso de be changed/replaced.
Canarias.
Chapters 5 & 6 - Once the seventies started, there was a change of focus - Common knowledge
Aniano Hernández on the Canarian economical landscape; the primary
Guerrra sector was replaced by the service sector thanks to
https://accedacris. commerce and tourism, joined by a multicultural amount
ulpgc.es/handle/ of immigrants in the islands that introduced the

10553/17371 archipelago to the process of globalization.

- The worst paid, most replaceable and poor workers have - Diagram 6, Dimensions of social and labor - Really strong; uses data from the the National
a really strong presence in the Canarian socioeconomic precariousness in the Canary Islands, 2011. Institute of Statistics of Spain and separates every
evolution. They can be separated into 4 different Elaborated with data from the INE (Instituto Nacional group into a really clear subgroup with precise
categories (from more to fewer people): de Estadística) regarding work and quality of life. numerical data
- Atypical workers: Permanent contracts but
part-time/temporary workers
- Low salary workers: Workers with salaries
smaller than the ⅔ of the average payment per
hour
- “Personal service” workers: restaurant
workers, protection workers, domestic workers,
etc
- Workers in elementary occupations:
employees in works that require physical effort

- The number of people living in households with incomes
below the risk of poverty threshold are totaling 728,929.
This broad demographic serves as a clear manifestation
of social inequality in the islands. The Canary Islands
have always been poor:
- Table 6 and Graph 6. Risk of poverty rate in Spain
and the Canary Islands, 2004-2011 made with the
data from Living Conditions Survey (INE). (EDIS,
1996)
- Also strong, uses precise and official data from the
country, but mixes many different sources in a
confusing way. Kinda proves the point in how the
GDP increase didn’t help in making us richer in the
Canary Islands.
 - 1980: 24,1% of households
- 1991: 24,6% of households
- In 2011, 30,1% of households were in risk of
poverty
- 2013: 21,4% of households
- The case of the Canary Islands shows how sometimes
GDP growth does not impact poverty reduction

- One in three employees works in the two predominant - Graph 4. Distribution (%) of those employed by - Very strong evidence, two different graphs that
branches of the services sector: commerce (16.1%) and professional categories. Canary Islands, 1991-2011 show how clearly service sector driven the islands
hotels/restaurants (16%). The main imbalance is found in and Graph 5. Percentage and absolute distribution of are and how this is affecting its development.
industrial activity, and in information and communication. those employed by branches of activity. Canary
The lack of them just shows how the Canary Islands lack Islands, 2011. Elaborated with data from the INE’s
the most fundamental part in the basis to promote a Census of Population and Housing.
dynamic and solid economic structure, accompanied by
the loss of importance of a key sector like the primary
(fishing, agriculture, farming, etc)
- Over 60% of Canarian companies focus on
commerce, business services, hospitality, and
construction, with emerging sectors like
computing, research, education, health, and
cultural activities collectively constituting less
than 4%.

- The amount of general employed people increased 62%, - Data retrieved from 1991 to 2011 thanks to the INE’s - Strong evidence, data from the INE once again,
but most importantly, the amount of female workers Active Population Survey. shows solid data
increased 108% from 1991 to 2011, one of the most
important parts of the model of capitalism from the West.

- Normally, with economic growth and an improvement of
knowledge there comes a balanced and cohesive social
improvement as well. Data, nevertheless shows a
different thing. "The process of precarization of labor
relations in the Canary Islands is evident." José Luis
Rivero (2009: 132). This just shows the bad quality of
employment present in the islands.
- A high proportion (45%) of service and elementary - Not that strong, doesn’t show its sources.
occupation workers among the employed. Also high Strengthens the ideas of diagram 6.
rates of low wages, temporary employment, and
unemployment justify the social imbalance
experienced.
- The focus in the commerce and tourism sectors doesn’t
leave space for technological innovation like industry or
technology, which in the long run would be more
beneficial for the islands. This is not a priority for the
Canarian businessman. In 2011, 48% of the working time
of the employees of the private sector of the Canary
Islands concentrated on activities of commerce and
hotels and restaurants.
- Table 4, Effective weekly hours worked by private
sector employees according to branches of activity.
Canary Islands, 2007-2011. Elaborated with data from
the INE (Instituto Nacional de Estadística) regarding
Active Population.
- Strong, shows again the importance of commerce,
hotels and restaurants among the economy of the
archipelago.

- The canarian business environment is impacted by these - According to the Economic and Social Council of the - The information is a bit abstract at first but helps to
factors Canary Islands (CES, 1996) understand the situation of the islands regarding
- Insularity, that makes transportation and business.
communication limited and more expensive.
- The different institutional context from
mainland Spain
- A structure dominated by services and its
reduced industry.

- To achieve cohesion in the Canarian economy, it is - The ideas of the author.

crucial to have a new economic structure, founded and
dominated by knowledge, information and
communications technologies, innovation, quality and
productive diversity.

- The precarity of work in the Canary Islands is dictated by - Diagram 7. Conceptual model of social-labor - Strong evidence. This diagram shows, without any
several factors precariousness in the Canary Islands numerical info, how precarity works in the Canary
- The weakness of business and businessman Islands. The diagram is really well created and
(small businesses, low education of workers) addresses the most important topics regarding the
- Professionals in the private sector (low situation in an easy way to understand.
technification on businesses, bad working
conditions)
- Unqualified workers of the personal sector (great
group of people with low productivity, low
salaries with temporal works and low education
of workers)
- Big unemployment
- Precarity-temporality in the private sector (the
role of women at work)
- Entrepreneurs with employees are mostly aged between - Graph 14. Distribution (%) of employers according to - Strong evidence, data from the INE once again,
34 and 64 (83%). This group is often characterized by a educational level. Spain and the Canary Islands, shows solid data about this.
low level of education, which poses challenges in the 2007-2011. Elaborated with data from the Active
context of the information society, knowledge economy, Population Survey, 2007-2011 (INE).
and technological innovation. With the exception of those
in finance and professional services, entrepreneurs in
various production sectors, especially in industry, energy,
and construction, tend to have lower educational levels.

- In 2011, the majority of unemployed people (63%) had - No sources or data shown more than that
not found work for more than 1 year. Among the percentage.
Canarian unemployed as a whole, the average job
search time has gone from 19 months in 2007 to 26 in
2011. The situation is especially serious for those over
45 years of age, Spanish by birth, and with a low
educational level.

- In conclusion, the study shows that the job market issues

in the Canary Islands won't be fixed by a simple
economic upturn. These problems have been around for
the last two decades, and they need more than just a
cycle change to improve. A new economic strategy
should tackle these issues to boost social development
in the Canary Islands.