maquiladora

American  

[muh-kee-luh-dawr-uh, mah-kee-ah-daw-rah] / məˌki ləˈdɔr ə, mɑˌki ɑˈdɔ rɑ /

noun

plural

maquiladoras

1. a factory run by a U.S. company in Mexico to take advantage of cheap labor and lax regulation.

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Etymology

Origin of maquiladora

1985–90; Mexican Spanish, perhaps < Spanish maquilar extract a toll

Example Sentences

In May and early June, more than 26,000 maquiladora workers in Baja California were vaccinated at the San Ysidro border crossing in San Diego.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 18, 2021

Mexican and local U.S. officials hope the maquiladora vaccination program will encourage the United States to reopen the land border with Mexico.

From New York Times • Jul. 26, 2021

This summer, the municipal government announced a new plan, called the Juárez Initiative, to repurpose an old export factory, or maquiladora, as a holding station for asylum seekers who are returned under M.P.P.

From The New Yorker • Oct. 1, 2019

Edita's daughter, Rosa, was working in one such maquiladora in 1995.

From BBC • Mar. 11, 2019

Crime hit such alarming levels this year that the local maquiladora industry – which pulls thousands to Reynosa every year to work in its export factories – warned that companies might be forced to relocate.

From The Guardian • Dec. 26, 2017