People in Santiago, Chile, who make their living sorting through trash for recyclables have helped make Chile the world's third most efficient paper recycler. A high unemployment rate-- almost 10 percent--has forced people to turn to the streets, and some have formed an unofficial work force that salvages recyclables. More than 50,000 workers, called cartoneros, or "cardboard men," collect, sort, and recycle Santiago's waste. Sometimes the cartoneros are actually families who work specific spots regularly. They stack paper, cardboard, cans, electrical wire, and other recyclable materials on carts and sell them to recycling companies. Chile's biggest paper and card recycling company, SOREPA, reports that it recycled 60 percent of all the paper used in Chile last year. Because cartoneros collect so much of Santiago's recyclable waste, what they leave behind for wastemanagement authorities is much less trash. Although the government has recognized the cartoneros as a social and environmental service and some aut horities have tried to get them more official status, the workers are still marginalized, and they lack job security and benefits. Most cartoneros arrived at their profession through desperation, but street recycling has become safer and more organized than it once was. The Association of Independent Collectors, a type of union of collectors and some sorting facilities, has had some success conducting business with larger companies. Some cartoneros have negotiated with Coca-Cola to return used cans to them, which has enabled the workers to make enough money to purchase trucks. Cartoneros are sometimes able to earn more than minimum wage. The amount of money they bring in depends on which materials they sell to recyclers (drink cans are worth the most).