Thousands of layoffs and a paralyzed economy in one of Panama’s poorest regions

Thousands of layoffs and a paralyzed economy in one of Panama’s poorest regions

QCOSTARICA (EFE) Street blockades in the western town of Changuinola continued on Monday after a month of protests by the banana industry union, the main employer in the province of Bocas del Toro, one of Panama’s poorest, where the multinational Chiquita laid off some 4,800 workers last week. The crisis stems from a social security reform that affected the benefits of banana industry workers. A labor court declared a strike led by the Banana, A…