LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS IN SPAIN AND THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF GLOBAL WORKPLACES

open_access
Open Access
Author:
Jentis, Matthew Ian
Area of Honors:
Labor and Employment Relations
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Elaine Farndale, Thesis Supervisor
Paul Vincent Whitehead, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
Spain
Dominican Republic
Comparative Employment Relations
Global
Abstract:
This paper seeks to analyze the importance of comparative employment relations in the global marketplace between the Dominican Republic and Spain. Comparative employment relations’ focuses on understanding how labor, management, unions, collective bargaining and benefits affect the economic structures within different countries. Aspects such as culture, geographic location, and employment opportunities also strongly result in different standards within countries. Overall, comparative employment relations help establish the clear similarities and differences among countries regarding their labor practices and opportunities. The two countries that are analyzed within this document are the Dominican Republic and Spain. The Dominican Republic is an island in the Caribbean Sea with a strong Hispanic history, culture and presence. Throughout its history, the Dominican Republic experienced many interactions with its colonizer, Spain, and thus Spain influenced Dominican labor practices. In comparison to the Dominican Republic, Spain is a country located in the Western European continent. During its imperialism within Latin America, the Spanish government maintained large settlements that provided the empire with large resources. The Spanish in turn helped establish initial employment relations through the settlers in their colonies, along with slavery. The Dominican Republic was one of the islands under Spanish control during two different eras in the 16th and 19th centuries. Therefore, one of the main arguments in this paper is that labor and employment relations in Spain and the Dominican Republic contain a strong historical connection based on Spanish imperialism. Along with recognizing the long held historical relationship between Spain and the Dominican Republic, another focus of this study is to analyze differences and similarities in their modern employment relations systems. Since these two countries share a long history dating back hundreds of years, it is important to understand whether their labor structures still appear very similar, or rather different. The main variables that are incorporated into the study include unions, labor relations, market structure, wages, and modern influence. These aspects of comparative employment relations reveal many current trends among workers in each country. Additionally, they help describe how both Dominican and Spanish employees experience employment opportunities. The last major component within this study is the results regarding whether employment relations systems between these two countries appear more similar or different. Overall, the labor structures and perceptions seem to be more different than similar in that both the Dominican Republic and Spain have undergone significant changes in their economies since Dominican independence in the 19th century. Therefore, while Dominican and Spanish workers may experience certain similarities in their employment systems, it is evident that their economies and workforce changed significantly since the era of Spanish colonization. Overall, the analysis conducted within this paper focuses on understanding and comparing employment relations between the Dominican Republic and Spain. As globalization continues to affect employment and economic conditions within countries, it is important to recognize different specific labor systems that affect the workplace and market systems.