Labor migration in Guatemala is not yet very well documented, although it is a several century-old phenomenon. Existing studies too often focus on the migration patterns of specific Indian communities or are solely descriptive. Therefore I think it is necessary to turn to a more general framework of analysis, whose departing point of view is the world-system theory in the tradition of Immanuel Wallerstein. Alter a brief theoretical introduction, the article aims at presenting a historical view of labor migration in Guatemala. By concentrating on the effects of labor migration for world-market production, we should gain some deeper insights into the causes and consequences of labor migration.
