Posted on 05/26/2003 3:51:30 PM PDT by Lessismore
WASHINGTON: On a recent April afternoon in Silicon Valley, moments after he was told he had been laid off from his computer programming job at a Bank of America training centre, Kevin Flanagan stepped into the parking lot and shot himself dead.
Some of America's technology workers, who like Flanagan have also had to collect pink slips over the last several months, think they know why Flanagan took his life: Bank of America not only outsourced his job to India, but forced him to train Indian workers to do the job he had to give up.
In the weeks since his death, the techies have used the incident as fuel to fire a campaign against outsourcing to India, an issue that now seems poised to become a major sticking point between the two countries. Several US states are already considering legislation to ban or limit outsourcing.
Bank of America is one of several major US corporations – General Electric, Microsoft, Intel are among others - under scrutiny for outsourcing jobs to India. The Bank created what is called a "Global Delivery centre" in 2000 to identify projects that could be sent offshore.
Since then it has signed agreements with Infosys and Tata Consulting Services (TCS) to provide solutions and services.
In an e-mail exchange with this correspondent, Kevin's father Tom Flanagan said "a significant reason for which my son took his life was indeed as a result of his job being outsourced."
"Did he blame India for his job loss? No. He blamed the "system." He couldn't understand why Americans are losing jobs. Rather I should say he understood it economically, but not emotionally," Flanagan said.
Bank officials, who did not return calls relating to Flanagan's death, have said in the past that the deal with Indian companies would effect no more than 5 per cent of the bank's 21,000 employees, or about 1,100 jobs, in its technology and operations division.
According to some surveys, the US has lost at least 800,000 jobs in the past year and some 3.3 million jobs will move overseas over the next few years because of outsourcing, mostly to India.
The Bank has also acknowledged that it had asked local workers to train foreigners because such knowledge transfer was essential. According to Tom Flanagan, his son was "totally disgusted" with the fact that he and his fellow-workers had to train foreigners to do his job so they could take over. "That sir is a travesty," he said in one e-mail.
US tech workers are challenging the corporate world's claim that it is outsourcing work to improve bottomlines and efficiency. Some analysts have also pointed out that US corporations were being forced to tighten up by the same people who are moaning about outsourcing, and who, heavily invested in the stock market, demand better performance.
But on one website that discussed the Flanagan case, a tech worker pointed out that data processing consumed only a small per cent of revenues and was hardly a drain on the Bank's profit.
"(It is) a prosperous bank which has let greed trump any sense of patriotism or social responsibility," he fumed.
Thanks! 8-)
I keep trying to remind myself!! :^)
Next, we should contact our congressmen and senators, and build a list of those who are pro-outsourcing and want to continue handing out H1B visas. Then vote them out and vote in people who are sensitive to the needs of working Americans.
Unlike the blue collar workers who lost their jobs in manufacturing when their work was sent overseas, we have the internet with which to communicate and help us make some noise.
Maybe we can even get some of those manufacturing jobs back home also. I have tried so hard not to buy anything Made in China but it is almost impossible.
I totally agree with you. I want to do something about this problem before it is too late.
You can't find any small appliances that aren't made in China. All the toys seem to be made in China too.
Here's the ones listed in the article:
1) Bank of America
2) General Electric
3) Microsoft
4) Intel
Add:
5) EMC
6) Dell
It sure does.
Try Hayek and Von Mises next :)
BUT GLOBALIZATION SURE SEEMS TO SUK RIGHT NOW!! LOL!
In one of my econ texts, there is a chart of what the 'poor' own. Most have 1-2 cars, washer dryer, cable TV, air conditioning, TV, etc... The percentage is huge, even of people on welfare.
The percentage of ownership ranged from 40 - 80%+ on most items...
The best of the best US citizens. Let's make it like IT industry and invite the 2 billion of chinese/indians in.
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