Many individuals in the developed world take for granted the ease of completing financial transactions, and the affect that these conveniences have on his/her wealth and everyday quality of life. When I lived in Quibdó, Colombia, I started to notice many small things that I had never even imagined were impediments to the development of the region. Many of these things had to do with the wasted time and energy of the individuals who lived in the town, specifically in reference to their financial endeavors.
Introduction. This post is a 2-part series of personal observations of several specific indirect costs that the people living in the poor town of Quibdó experience as a part of their daily struggle to, not just acquire wealth, but to survive. Below I list the top 3 inconveniences that indirectly affect the development & accumulation of wealth in Quibdó, and, perhaps, the quality of life of other individuals who live in underserved countries around the world. Items #4-9 will be covered in Part II.
#1 Not getting paid on time, or not getting paid at all for the time you have worked. The first thing I noticed when I starting working in Quibdo, was the inconsistent pay schedule. No one could be sure of when payday actually was. The second thing I noticed was the delay of the issuance of contracts. Many individuals in the office were working without a contract and, therefore, receiving no pay. Women with young children and families came to work everyday in their business best, sat at their desks, and worked, hoping that they would be on the next list of people to receive a contract. The response from HR was always “No hay presupuesto,” or, there is no budget. In a poor town with very little employers, you don’t make a fuss about those lost days. It was just how things operated. I knew people who hadn’t been paid for 6 months. That time and money was just lost. All of your hard work? It was gifted to the organization.
NOTE: During the “grace period” between each issuance of new contracts, getting a political or community leader to lobby on your behalf in order to get you on the next list of people to receive a contract, is very much welcomed and encouraged.
#2 If you are a contract worker, having to prepare a 12-page packet “Requisitos para el pago” before you can get paid, for each pay period. There were about 5 different forms that had to be completed for each pay period, before you could get paid. You needed an original set of these forms and 3 copies of the set. Together, this packet made up your “Requirements for payment.” All packets needed to be turned into the HR office and they were then mailed to the capital, where the papers would be reviewed for accuracy. Packets would be returned if anything was crossed out or you tried to write over something. If you are owed two month’s pay (pay would often got off schedule), you would have to prepare a 12-page packet for each month, changing dates and amounts, as necessary. Imagine working in the HR office where you collected 12+ pages for each contract employee. Imagine all the time and energy, not to mention the trees, wasted by completing these packets every month.
#3 Having to pay for national services BEFORE you can receive your first paycheck. Health insurance, pension, and social security all need to be paid before you could receive each paycheck. In fact, you have to turn these ORIGINAL payment receipts into HR as part of your “Requirements of Pay packet” before you can begin the process of receiving your check. For most people who didn’t have savings, pulling together about $400,000 COP (roughly $200 USD) before you even got paid wasn’t an easy feat. I asked a friend what do people do when it’s finally time to get their first pay check and they don’t have the money. He said that they get it somehow. The other inconvenience is that you actually have to physically go to each of these agencies and pay in person. If you lose the original receipt, you start the process all over again.