Maria Elena: the end of an urban experience. A study case in the Atacama Desert, Chile

Abstract

In this paper we look into the relationship between the nit-rate town of Maria Elena (in Region II) - designed on utopian principals as a private project - and the changing labor relations between the SQM Company and the workers as a result of the predominance of a new accumulation model guided by competitiveness, quality production and globalization. The town was created so that men and women could establish their livelihoods in the Atacama Desert, with guarantees and infrastructure based on a full employment policy. This was in order to anchor the population in this inhospitable environment, to meet production objectives and to strengthen a coherent and cohesive identity. New strategic decisions led to this model being replaced by one based on labour flexibilization, deleting its original intention and collective interest to give way to a mining camp.