IBM looks to move jobs abroad

New York Times/Houston Chronicla ^ | 7/22/03 | NY Times

[adam_az]

With American corporations under increasing pressure to cut costs and build global supply networks, senior IBM officials told their corporate colleagues around the world in a recorded conference call that IBM needed to accelerate its efforts to move white-collar, often high-paying, jobs overseas, even though that might create a backlash among politicians and its own employees.

During the call, IBM's top employee-relations executives said 3 million service jobs were expected to shift to foreign workers by 2015 and that IBM should move some of its jobs now done in the United States, including software design jobs, to India and other countries.

"Our competitors are doing it, and we have to do it," Tom Lynch, IBM's director for global employee relations, said in the call.

A recording was provided to the New York Times recently by the Washington Alliance of Technology Workers, a Seattle-based group seeking to unionize high-tech workers. The group said it received the recording, which was made by IBM, from an IBM employee upset about the plans.

IBM's internal discussion about moving jobs overseas provides a revealing look at how companies are grappling with a growing trend that many economists call offshoring. In decades past, millions of American manufacturing jobs moved overseas, but in recent years the movement has also shifted to the service sector, with everything from low-end call center jobs to high-paying computer chip design jobs migrating to India, China, Russia, the Philippines and other countries.

Officials at IBM and many other companies argue that creating more jobs in lower-cost locations overseas keeps their industries competitive, holds costs down for American consumers and helps to develop poorer nations while supporting overall employment in the United States by improving productivity and the nation's global reach.

"It's not about one shore or another shore," said Kendra R. Collins, an IBM spokeswoman. "It's about investing around the world, including the United States, to build capability and deliver value as defined by our customers."

But in recent weeks, many politicians in Washington, including some in the Bush administration, have begun voicing concerns about the issue during a period when the economy is still weak.

In the IBM conference call, which took place in March, the company's executives were particularly worried that the trend could spur unionization efforts.

The IBM officials also warned that when workers from China come to the United States to learn to do technology jobs now being done here, some American employees might grow enraged about being forced to train the foreign workers who might ultimately take away their jobs.

[adam_az]

Officials at IBM and many other companies argue that creating more jobs in lower-cost locations overseas keeps their industries competitive, holds costs down for American consumers and helps to develop poorer nations while supporting overall employment in the United States by improving productivity and the nation's global reach.

They won't be low enough when all the white collar jobs are overseas and the US becomes a Turd World country!

(I am an ex-IBMer. And to think that once, I "bled blue.")

[samuel_adams_us]

You know back in your generation, my fathers generation, IBM was growing because of he intelligence and hard work of the employees. Today's IBM is run by the hippie generation and the only way they know how to make money is by screwing people as they are to lazy to earn a living.

[b fair]

"holds costs down for American consumers"

There won't be any American consumers if they keep sending our jobs abroad.

[adam_az]

Back in my generation?

I'm only about to hit 30 for chrissakes. :)

[lelio]

Already posted

[El Gato]

The IBM officials also warned that when workers from China come to the United States to learn to do technology jobs now being done here, some American employees might grow enraged about being forced to train the foreign workers who might ultimately take away their jobs.

Gee, ya think? And if they do, it won't be pitchforks and torches that they come with.

[Bobby777]

Third World country is where we are heading fast ... as you say, a majority of white collar will go overseas and the tax base will shrink accordingly ...

[KC_Conspirator]

"Our competitors are doing it, and we have to do it," Tom Lynch, IBM's director for global employee relations, said in the call.

What? Like GE? They moved over their jobs to India and the company still stinks. This is typical idiotic corporate America thinking.

[Orangedog]

During the call, IBM's top employee-relations executives said 3 million service jobs were expected to shift to foreign workers by 2015 and that IBM should move some of its jobs now done in the United States, including software design jobs, to India and other countries.

So much for the vaunted service economy producing good paying jobs here. I told HP/Compaq that they had sold their last laptop to me after they moved their tech support to India. It's bad enough that none of the PC's are made here anymore, now none of them will be serviced and supported here either. Whether it's intentional or not, moves like this WILL gut the U.S. middle class by the end of the decade.

[Paleo Conservative]

They should start with their CEO. I'm sure they could find someone in India for a lot less.

[Cacique]

PING

If you would like to be removed from my job export ping list FReepmail me. If you'd like to be on it FReepmail me too.

[maestro]

......migrating to India, China, Russia, the Philippines and other countries..........

ITALY...???

[Dubh_Ghlase]

Me too. I was a victim of the LVG-Disease and was sold like a slave to another company. The current employer is now training overseas workers (here) to take the jobs back to their home country. Some fuzzy/buzzy boardroom keywords about "Shareholder Value" echoes around here somewhere...

Hold costs down? Ha! The people left won't be able to afford it anyway! It's just highlevel execs padding their own bonus and compensation plan before they hit the silks.

For you who are reading: WATCH YOUR PENSION FUNDS! It already may be too late!!!

[BiffWondercat]

I am starting to wonder if Capitalism will have the same result as the Socialist model. Will it revert to feudalism. A small Ultra-Wealthy "ruling class", A larger "Support Class", then a much larger "Unwashed/Unwanted/Useless Class"?

Trans-National Corporations do not care about countries or their peoples, only "markets" and the profits they create.

Yea, "Free-Traders" I'm waiting until you guys start being outplaced or are busting ass so hard you forget your own kids names!

Every human activity needs limits. If you don't think so, let's toss out the bible, property rights, rule of law, ect.seems we're doing that now.

[riri]

It's just highlevel execs padding their own bonus and compensation plan before they hit the silks

You are so right.

[RightWhale]

I am starting to wonder if Capitalism will have the same result as the Socialist model.

Capitalism, big capitalism is long gone. Communism is just about gone. The whole planet is going global like it or not, and the rules are being made up as we go. Hang onto the Constitution and don't allow any further amendments no matter what: it's our only anchor.

[RaceBannon]

Free Traitors! Spread the word!

[BiffWondercat]

But they are eroding that by the day as well! "He who has the gold makes the rules" I guess this will never change because we are truly such a limited species.

Can someone tell me what the value is of "I Love you"?
I am sure that some corpo
ration has worked it out to 69 cents + current production costs + advertising + legal fees
+ n^x degree.

What about the simple dignity of ANY of us putting in a hard days work to earn our pay? To feel USEFUL?

I have read of a drug that supresses sleep with apparently (yea, right) no ill effects. You could stay awake all week, sleep Friday night, then wake Saturday morning; feeling as if you had not missed any sleep all week. If long term testing of this drug can accomplish this with an acceptable level of psycosis/violent acts, or if it can be re-encoded into the human genome - Think of the productivity gains! I can imagine the CEO's salivating of the "un-met needs of consumers" at 2-5 am.

I am just saying that America had this crap back in the 1800's. Monoplies, Robber barons, all that crap. If you invent the cure to cancer - May you have fortunate beyond (that guy who wrote all that software..Arghhhh..LINUX BAD...JIM, gasp,,,NOT A COMMIE, 'When in the course of events, it becomes necessry...)

I need to read for awhile and learn somethings....

[RightWhale]

What about the simple dignity of ANY of us putting in a hard days work to earn our pay? To feel USEFUL?

All they need is somebody to oil the machines. Or used to need. They have automatic oilers now. Maybe we'll get lucky and reincarnate as steam engines.

One thing for sure. If anything is limited, it isn't us. We are universal, can do anything, can be anything. Nobody knows what we will become. When we get Hillary's perfect village up and running with automatic oilers and everything, then what? She has no answer for that.