Cuba loosens controls on barbers

[ensho]

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/04/201041354913997359.html


Cuba is turning over hundreds of state-run barber shops and beauty salons to employees in what appears to be the start of an overhaul of state retail services by Raul Castro, the Cuban president.

Barbers and hairdressers across the country said they would be able to rent the space where they work and pay taxes instead of receiving a monthly wage, it was reported on Tuesday.

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The measure marks the first time state-run, retail-level establishments have been handed over to employees since they were nationalised in 1968, however the government has not announced the new policy, nor has the state-run media reported it.

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The retail sector has come under heavy criticism for poor service and rampant theft, and officials have repeatedly urged patience as they experiment with ways to bring improvement, without launching into full-scale capitalism.
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good, hope it goes through