According to Omaira Páez Sepúlveda: "The revaluation of the Colombian peso between 2004-2008 meant the loss of more than 22 thousand jobs and the closure of dozens of flower companies."
Colombian floriculture is one of the stories to highlight at the export level, it has been practicing this activity for more than forty years, and is currently located as the first supplier in the United States market and the second exporter of flowers at the level. world. Annual sales amount to more than one billion dollars, and the social impact of the sector is very important since floriculture generates almost 100,000 direct jobs and more than 80,000 indirect jobs.
During the year 2004 - 2005, Colombian floriculture went through one of the worst crises in existence, due to the revaluation of the peso against the dollar, in addition to being affected by the high cost of oil and its derivatives, which first translated into a lower sale price of products abroad, therefore lower income for producers and secondly, an increase in production costs due to the transportation of raw materials and finished products. "However, in 2004 the sector allocated more than 45 billion pesos to social investment programs", which include programs such as "The school of flower growers" and "Let's cultivate peace in the family" in addition to other projects in the areas education, recreation and housing.
In the Colombian rural sector, formal jobs are scarce because most of the industries established in these areas do not comply with the Colombian labor law and taking into account that in several municipalities of the country, floriculture is the sustenance of the families' economy. not only for the private sector but also for the state to guarantee that companies comply with the minimum labor requirements established by law 100 and subsequently develop strategies that allow the creation of sustainable social development programs in the medium and long term, which provide the possibility the families of these areas have better opportunities in terms of health, education and in general the quality of life in the area is improved.
By adding these factors and taking into account that workers in the flower growing sector are currently directly affected by: Long hours of work in unsuitable weather conditions (Low temperatures), Low wages, displacement situations, violence, poverty, illiteracy, the inexistent possibilities of promotion, among other factors; These causes in general for the population cause demotivation or "burnout syndrome" which affects the level of productivity of the company and therefore its profitability.
According to the above, the following questions are posed:
To answer the first question, it is necessary to evaluate the impact that currently has in the areas where floriculture has its greatest influence, on the other hand, the second question is a little easier to answer and the first answer is that social programs only they can exist as long as the floriculture business is profitable. Otherwise, companies are destined to disappear and, as a consequence, people who are currently linked to them directly or indirectly will become part of the large number of unemployed that currently exist in the country.
If the above is taken as true, then a new question arises:
Currently in the Agro-industry specifically in the cultivation of flowers, the experience of the growers, collaborators is a very important factor, since any failure or modification in the treatment of the raw material (flowers, fertilizers, chemicals, water, etc.) affects the quality of products causing the underuse or overuse of available resources. And as it is well known, the loss of resources (human resources, training, money, time, raw materials, final product etc.) whatever the reason, cause a significant increase in production costs that are reflected in the states financial companies.
It should be noted that companies in the floriculture sector currently use the personnel rotation strategy as a hiring basis, and although it is not the objective of this study to demerit the "Personnel Rotation" strategy, but rather to analyze whether this strategy is adequate for the floriculture case, or if the loss of resources (raw material, product in process or finished product) due to poor quality exceed the costs of maintaining personnel during low demand seasons.
PROBLEM FORMULATION
Are the labor recruitment strategies currently used by flower companies located in the Bogotá savannah adequate, taking into account the economic framework in which they operate? And Is the level of participation in social protection programs by entrepreneurs? Does it guarantee that the people linked to this industry have a good level of quality of life?
OBJECTIVES (PROVISIONAL)
GENERAL OBJECTIVES
Study, analyze and determine if the hiring process currently used by flower companies is the one indicated for this industry.
Encourage employers to comply with the codes of conduct currently established by the associations or unions in the sector.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
- Carry out a market analysis to establish the conditions, characteristics and other important factors in the development of the activity Study the current contracting process and present a contracting strategy that reduces the cost of production for entrepreneurs Evaluate compliance with the codes conduct and quality seals of the sector. Design a plan to reduce the factors that most influence workers such as: Illiteracy, poverty, job instability and; that at the same time does not represent a significant impact on the profitability of the companies.Design strategies for continuous improvement aimed at improving in a sustainable way, the development of the rose growing companies and the region where they are located.
JUSTIFICATION
At the end of the sixties, the orientation of Colombian flower growers or floriculturists showed a tendency to sell their products in foreign markets "Export", which showed an early globalization of this economic activity, since the evolution of this type of The industry has been permanent, since with respect to its origins it has changed and innovated in many aspects. This paper aims to analyze, for the flower growing sector of the Bogotá Savanna dedicated to the cultivation of roses, the social impact and profitability that the contracting strategies currently used in companies have had and to study the level of participation of entrepreneurs in compliance with the codes of conduct and quality seals adopted by the sector.
Colombia has established itself as one of the largest producers of ornamental flowers for the world, achieving a large participation of 60% in the flower market of the United States, 4% in the market of the European Union, 6.4% of the United Kingdom, in addition to the recognition and entry of its products into new markets such as Asia and Japan, in which it has begun to consolidate.
Aspects that show the level of general impact of the floriculture sector on the economy are listed below:
- It generates 182,174 jobs (98,641 direct / 83,533 indirect). Currently 1,000,000 Colombians depend on floriculture. Exports in 2006 reached USD $ 967 million. Currently there are 7,290 hectares of production in the Bogotá savanna and 1,400 in Antioquia. 60% of the workforce is made up of women. 95% of production is exported. Floriculture is the first line of non-traditional agricultural exports from Colombia. Flowers represent 75% of the air cargo exported by Colombia. Colombia is currently the world's leading exporter of carnations.
| Font type | Source |
| Primary | - Information obtained from the source directly. |
| high schools | - Databases of the companies studied.
- Previous sector studies. - Proexport statistics. - Statistics of Asocolflores. - Dane statistics. - Books. - Specialized magazines. |
| Tertiary | - Interviews. |
BIBLIOGRAPHY
HODSON, William K, "Manual of the Industrial Engineer: Maynard", Publisher: McGRaw-Hill, 1998.
MENDENHALL William, Probability and Statistics for Engineering and Sciences, Fourth Edition, Prentice Hall Iberoamericana SA 1990.
NIEBEL, Benjamín, FREIVALDS Andris, «Industrial Engineering: Methods, Standards and Work Design» A Tenth Edition, Editorial: Alfaomega, México, DF, 2004
http://www.elespectador.com/opinion/editorial/articulo the wilt-of the flower sector
Working conditions and crisis in the floriculture sector, Omaira Páez Sepúlveda, Friday, February 13, 2009.
Words by Ernesto Vélez Koppel, President of the Board of Directors of ASOCOLFLORES; Bogotá, February 16, 2005.
www.Asocolflores.com
Download the original file
