The present study focuses on the characteristics of late industrialization in a city in Ceará State (in the semiarid region of Northeast Brazil) and its implications for work, environment, and health in the context of industrial mobility and advanced capitalism. Using direct observation of work processes, interviews (with production managers, company presidents, workers, local authorities, and community leaders), institutional visits and secondary data analysis, eight recently built factories that manufacture chemicals, shoes, electric appliances, clothing, mechanical parts, and packaging were analyzed as to relocation, technology, organization, work relations, worker profile, environmental and occupational risks, and the impact of these factors on health and regulatory mechanisms. The lack of adequate criteria for attracting and accepting new investments, leading to a "get it while you can" attitude, the poor quality of jobs and environmental conditions, and the scale of new changes and risks in the area, like the difficulties of the public sector and society in dealing with these challenges, raise the issue of sustainability in the current development processes.
Industrilization; Environment; Work; Occupational Risks; Working Conditions
