The industrial complex at Ciudad Sahagún is the result of one of the first attempts by the Mexican government to deal with rural poverty through industrialization. The principal intent of the authors, both anthropologists, is to describe the effects of industrialization on a rural population and the resulting transformation of its work force from peasantry to proletariat. While the authors report many interesting facts about the evolution of the firms, the unions, and the work force, the central hypothesis concerning the nature of labor—management relations under a parastatal regime—is never clearly delineated and, consequently, never proved.
From the tone of the discussion, one gathers that the authors feel that the traditional labor—management dynamic characterized by an adversary relationship based upon a struggle for the division of product—is not appropriate in state-owned enterprises. This may well be true, but such a hypothesis requires careful elaboration and objective proof. Unfortunately, there is little of either. By focusing some attention on the human aspects of a development project, however, the authors have provided a timely reminder that the evaluation of the success of such projects should not be done solely from an economic perspective.
