How China is creating a new worker elite in Latin America through its "big tech"

Latin America and the Caribbean add something more than 658 million inhabitantsa powerful stock market on the rise both over the last few years and in the projections in the short term that has captured the interest of foreign multinationals. Both from the US and from the other side of the Atlantic and the Pacific. In China there are large companies that have opted for landing in Latin America, generating, among other effects, job opportunities… and a new class of professionals, technicians qualified and coveted that grow under it.

The landing in the LATAM region of large Chinese technology companies, such as Didi, Kyaishou, Huawei or TikTok —notes Rest of World— has led to the need for professionals with technical knowledge and knowledge of the Latin American market who see an interesting door open for their careers. His task is to translate the objectives to the new scenario as Chinese firms expand, especially after the experience of the pandemic.

The result is that marketing or business development professionals see an alternative opening up to companies in the US or Europe that had been benefiting from local talent. to compete, accurate Rest of Worldsome Chinese companies have chosen to reinforce the attractiveness of their offers with bonuses, such as higher salaries, sometimes paid in dollars, which means an extra addition in countries like Argentina, affected by serious inflation.

Talent under China

Their profile and experience with Chinese companies and the Latin American market makes them especially interesting for companies from the Asian giant that have recently arrived in the region, which even leads to competition between the firms. “When we launched Kwai we brought in a lot of people from TikTok,” Explain a Mexican professional who had also worked for Didi and acknowledges: “Despite their non-compete agreements, there is a lot of knowledge theft among competitors.”

The report of the International Labor Organization (ILO) on the influence of China on employment in Latin America leaves an interesting example. When analyzing salaries, the technicians write down salaries adjusted to the legislation and demands of each of the markets, although, yes, with an eye on talent. “In several cases, salary efforts above the local and national market to attract talented personnel”, states the ILO study.

“They draw attention, particularly in Mexico, aggressive incentive schemes for base salaries. In the case of Huawei, for example, it offers options from the company itself for high-level executives and benefits such as savings funds with the participation of the company, food and dining subsidies, major medical expenses and support for renting accommodation for the employees”, the study points outwhich points out, in any case, that Chinese companies tend to integrate citizens of their own country at the highest levels of the corporate ladder.

The Chinese technology sector is not the only one that has been strongly felt in Latin America. According to calculations of Daniel Lau, of KPMG, throughout the last decade Chinese companies injected more than 120,000 million of US dollars in the region.

The trend would have been especially acute in Brazil. The ILO report also points out how between 1995 and 2016 China generated 1.8 million jobs in Latin America through three large branches: net trade (65% of the total), infrastructure projects (20%) and OFDI (fifteen%). As for the territorial level, the report highlights the cases of Brazil and Mexico.

Cover image: Campaign Creators (Unsplash)