See these guys? They work harder than you ever thought of for about a dollar an hour.When people ask me about working overseas I get the impression that they think that this some Dickensian horror where the employees are grossly abused and we are reduced to working with sharp stones and Swiss army knives. This is simply not true -at least in the countries of the far east. That doesn't mean there aren't substantial differences. And to be frank there are a lot of folks out there that don't treat their employees well. For the most part the most egregious abuses are to be found in Africa and the middle east. These are places where slavery is not far below the surface. In the second world nations where I work the rule of law is for the most part functional in the small ways that make working less hellish and more livable. The employees here are contract workers from India. They work here 7 days a week up to 12 hours a day for 2 years at a time. It sounds tough but at the end of 2 years they have gained valuable skills and made about 50% more money than they would have at home plus soon there after they will have made their 10,000 hours. For young men from India this is a hot house for experience and job training. Most likely it will be the making of them.
Safety gear who needs safety gear! (oh yeah he's from the states)
Safety posters
No horror here
The same stuff is available everywhere. But the quantity and quality is can be considerably less than that of the US or even Japan or Korea. In the states you might go to a job and find 4 or 5 of a tool in good working order. Except for the most expensive and unusual stuff it is typically owned by the workmen themselves. Here it is common to find no more than one or two of a tool and no one owns their own gear -not even a flashlight or pocket knife. And if a man can get the money together for a few simple tools it will very likely be the making of his fortune. The young fellows here make only about $500 a month (still better than India where they would be making about $350/mo.) So it is understandable that they have almost nothing. So be happy Dear Reader because if you are reading this you won the freakin' lottery.
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