Help for Gabi

[islanddream]

In the U.S., if a person is a subcontractor to a business then he has to pay his own SS taxes. Is that the case in Mexico? If so, is Gabi an "employee" of Scubamau or what we would consider a subcontractor?

 

[Tesibria]

In the U.S., if a person is a subcontractor to a business then he has to pay his own SS taxes. Is that the case in Mexico? If so, is Gabi an "employee" of Scubamau or what we would consider a subcontractor?

Speaking *generally,* the "rules" in Mexico are much stricter than they are in the US (even in California!) regarding whether an individual is an employee or an independent contractor/subcontractor.

Speaking *generally,* an individual who is working for an unspecified duration, who has a regular work schedule (as directed by the company), and whose duties are based on instructions from the company is considered an employee under Mexico law and cannot properly be classified as an independent contractor or subcontractor under Mexico law.



Disclaimer: This information is general information only and does not constitute legal advice in any way shape or form. :cool2:

 

[bgda]

I dove with SM many times (including Gabi and Opal). Wonderful Dive Operation. My guess is that Gabi is what we would call in the states "working under the table". So no taxes taken out or SS paid. And for the record-I agree that we shouldn't judge a Dive Shop by its store front or PADI stickers or price tag for that matter. I dive in the states, Caymans, Turks, Bahamas, Jamaica etc. and even so called PADI 5 Star and NAUI facilities haven't compared to SM. Yes they charge the big bucks and have the big fancy cattle boats but I doubt they pay their staff any more money and I would be surprised if they had SS unless they were part of a Resort. Don't misunderstand-I am not suggesting the shops shouldn't charge more and put the DM on the books so they can get SS. I just want people to realize that just because you pay more money at 1 shop than another the more expensive shop may not be paying their staff any more money or putting them on the books.

BTW-I will be back in Cozumel this coming Friday-I will stop in shop and make a donation for Gabi.

 

[Tesibria]

It's not even so much that I would worry about diving with an op that didn't cover their employees, but more so that I would like to see dive ops value their employees enough to cover them, if they are able to. Not knowing much about MX SS, is it expensive, and that's why they don't cover employees?

It's all relative, no?

The Mexico minimum wage is a daily wage rate equal to about $4-4.50 USD/day (varies depending on state).

Employers generally are required to contribute to multiple government programs, based on employee qualifying wages (similar to social security, disability insurance, workers comp, etc. in the US, as well as a few that are not in the US such as low income housing and day-care related contributions). Add up all the required contributions and it equals about 50-60% of the employee’s wages give-or-take a few percentage points.

Additionally, employees generally are entitled to a Christmas bonus (equal to about 15 days' wages) and paid vacation (varies depending on seniority – starts at 6 days per year), and other paid time off or premiums for consecutive work days beyond six. So add a premium of about 20-25% on top of wage payments.

Additionally, there's no "at will" employment in Mexico, which means that employees generally are entitled to severance if terminated for any reason other than cause (amount depends on seniority).

So, a general rule of thumb is that the “cost” (to comply with laws) is about double an employee’s qualifying wages.

So, back to “it’s all relative” ... the overall cost of properly classifying individuals as employees can be almost double the cost of various “off the book” arrangements.... Whether that's prohibitive depends on what the employee's base qualifying wage is (....and how you value compliance with laws and protecting your employees against the cost of running a business, I guess ...).




Disclaimer: This information is general information only and does not constitute legal advice in any way shape or form.

 

[driftin' by]

First off, I'm starting to sound like a broken record here but Dave, you're a real class act. Thanks for all you have done and continue to do.

Second, is there anyway to participate in this "matching gift" effort without physically stopping by the Aldora Offices either through PayPal or another secure payment site?

 

[driftin' by]

Also on a purely selfish level I need to be worried as a consumer as to whether those same cost cutting measures are extending to include safery measures such as tank quality, gear maintenance, air quality, equipment quality, etc.

Also, I'd like to have confidence to know a DM would be willing to reasonably save my butt without them thinking they could be financially on the hook if they got fouled up themselves. Again, kind of a selfish thought and I'm only responsible for myself, but it's why I ALWAYS choose to dive with others whether it's my buddy(wife), someone I just met on a boat or a DM. And for that matter, there is probably nobody else as well qualified to handle such a situation. Gabi is evidence of that.

 

[Ron Lee]

Deleted since my original post was counterproductive to the original post/offer.

 

[Dave Dillehay]

Dear Ron,

I encourage anyone to help in any way they can, but if I am gonna match it, I have to see the pesos!


Dave Dillehay
Aldora Divers

 

[lionfish-eater]

Dave, I mailed you a check today. Your action speaks louder than the words of many others. You are what my people call a "real mensch".


Get out of the jar!

 

[jbjclj]

Is there a link to the Paypal account?