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White-Collar Exodus
ABC News ^ | July 29, 2003 | Betsy Stark

Posted on 08/03/2003 7:42:08 AM PDT by RockyMtnMan

Michael Emmons thought he knew how to keep a job as a software programmer.

"You have to continue to keep yourself up to speed," he said. "If you don't, you'll get washed out."

Up to speed or not, Emmons wound up being "washed out" anyway. Last summer, he moved his family from California to Florida for the Siemens Co., makers of electronics and equipment for industries. Not long after, Emmons and 19 other programmers were replaced by cheaper foreign workers.

Adding insult to injury, Emmons and the others had to train their replacements.

"It was the most demoralizing thing I've ever been through," he told ABCNEWS. "After spending all this time in this industry and working to keep my skills up-to-date, I had to now teach foreign workers how to do my job so they could lay me off."

Just as millions of American manufacturing jobs were lost in the 1980s and 1990s, today white-collar American jobs are disappearing. Foreign nationals on special work visas are filling some positions but most jobs are simply contracted out overseas.

"The train has left the station, the cows have left the barn, the toothpaste is out of the tube," said John McCarthy, director of research at Forrester Research, who has studied the exodus of white-collar jobs overseas. "However you want to talk about it, you're not going to turn the tide on this in the same way we couldn't turn the tide on the manufacturing shift."

India Calling

Almost 500,000 white-collar American jobs have already found their way offshore, to the Philippines, Malaysia and China. Russia and Eastern Europe are expected to be next. But no country has captured more American jobs than India.

In Bangalore, India, reservation agents are booking flights for Delta; Indian accountants are preparing tax returns for Ernst & Young; and Indian software engineers are developing new products for Oracle.

They are all working at a fraction of the cost these companies would pay American workers.

For example, American computer programmers earn about $60,000, while their Indian counterparts only make $6,000.

"It's about cost savings," said Atul Vashistha, CEO of NeoIT, a California-based consulting company that advises American firms interested in "offshoring" jobs previously held by Americans. "They need to significantly reduce their cost of doing business and that's why they're coming to us right now."

Vivek Pal, an Indian contractor for technology consulting group Wipro, whose clients include Microsoft, GE, JP Morgan Chase, and Best Buy, is hiring 2,000 Indian workers quarterly to keep up with demand. Pal knows American workers resent the "offshoring" trend but says all Americans will benefit in the long run.

"Globalization — whether it's for products or services — may feel like it hurts, but at the end of the day, it creates economic value all around," said Pal.

At the end of the day, Emmons has a different view: "If you sit at a desk, beware," he said. "Your job is going overseas."


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Government; Philosophy; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: outsourcing
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To: Agamemnon
You and whiners like you are your own worst enemies.

Asking what Americans will do for a living -- now that we are exporting all the jobs -- is now defined as whining?

Then proudly and prominently brand me with the title of Whiner, because I am not going to stop asking this sensible question.

161 posted on 08/03/2003 10:04:20 AM PDT by Lazamataz (PROUDLY POSTING WITHOUT READING THE ARTICLE SINCE 1999!)
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To: Petruchio; Dane
You danced around my point without answering it.

He's too busy being a CEO to answer your question. LOL!

162 posted on 08/03/2003 10:06:06 AM PDT by Lazamataz (PROUDLY POSTING WITHOUT READING THE ARTICLE SINCE 1999!)
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To: Agamemnon
You can't come to grips with the fact that these programmers' jobs

Don't assume things with leaps of logic and tell me what I can and can't come to grips with, because you're wrong. I know that techs (including self-employed types like me) made way too much, and there is nothing wrong with "shopping for a good deal" as you say.

My thing is "do unto others". I would never have an employee train another person then fire him and have that other person take his place. That's wrong.

If the employer discloses that he is palnning on using him and is going to fire him afterwards that's one thing, somehow I don't see that as what's happening.

Also, if these businesses want to find the market for paying techs, I have no problem with that. I do have a problem with them being allowed to manipulate our immigration laws to do so. That's wrong.

163 posted on 08/03/2003 10:06:43 AM PDT by AAABEST
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To: Doohickey
Thanks for the clarification. I even rubbed my eyes to see if it would get better.
164 posted on 08/03/2003 10:07:57 AM PDT by raybbr
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To: Dane
I am not a Buchananite, nor have I ever even thought about voting for Perot.

I take it you do not agree that President Bush has been targeting tax dollars to minority groups whose vote he hopes to win?

Do you also disagree that the White House (and Capitol Hill) are not learning the lessons of the migration of manufacturing and are in fact turning a blind eye to the offshoring of American jobs?

By the way, please do not attack me or attempt to classify me as a certain type of conservative because we do not agree on this issue. I have not attacked you and am not drawing any conclusions about your ideology based solely on this topic.

165 posted on 08/03/2003 10:08:50 AM PDT by Doohickey
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To: RockyMtnMan
Checkers pay no taxes and probably only have a high school education (or are retirees). They also have little to zero disposable income and invest hardly anything. I would not compare the net loss to an engineer that probably pays more in taxes than they make all year and puts money into a 401k account.

Don't start a class warfare in job protection. It makes Republicans look mean and if you look at the numbers it is a losing proposition.

166 posted on 08/03/2003 10:10:05 AM PDT by AndyJackson
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To: Willie Green; RLK
WTF are you babbling about? Perot sold EDS to General Motors back in the mid-80s

You are correct. He did control EDS but was booted out in the late 80's for a price of $700,000,000.

Now his creation from which he profited very nicely from is now outsourcing.

Where's the anger and outrage from Ross Perot of his creations(EDS) outsourcing.

Oh that's right it comes from his Perot's supporters on FR. Willie and RLK to do the poltical mudslinging, while leaving Perot out of the loop.

Nevermind.

167 posted on 08/03/2003 10:10:15 AM PDT by Dane
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To: Agamemnon
Buggy whip manufacturers faced the same thing when cars were invented or earlier when steam engines were invented.

It didn't happen overnight, did it?

168 posted on 08/03/2003 10:13:29 AM PDT by raybbr
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To: Doohickey
I've always given corporate executives the benefit of the doubt, but my confidence is definately wavering.

Say what you will about old Henry Ford and some of his nutty political eccentricities, he was a guy who legitimately cared about the people working for him. He strongly felt that his loyal employees should actually have a decent enough living to be able to purchase his products.

We could use a few more Henry Ford style corporatists in America today.

169 posted on 08/03/2003 10:14:13 AM PDT by jpl
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To: Lazamataz
Asking what Americans will do for a living -- now that we are exporting all the jobs -- is now defined as whining?

Where do I sign up for a Whiner's Club Card? It is an important question, and Bush better have an answer or some smart Democrat is going to make mince-meat of him in the next election.

170 posted on 08/03/2003 10:14:54 AM PDT by AndyJackson
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To: AndyJackson
That's true, from a political standpoint.

It is the checkers of the world who should shout the loudest about offshoring. After all it dimishes their opportunities the most by eliminating entry level positions. If more senior level positions are targeted then those workers are forced to take whatever is availible, further reducing opportunities for the checkers.

The idea is to keep the "American Dream" alive by providing more opportunity. Everyone should be a champion of more opportunity.
171 posted on 08/03/2003 10:14:59 AM PDT by RockyMtnMan
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To: Dane
You are correct. He did control EDS but was booted out in the late 80's for a price of $700,000,000. Now his creation from which he profited very nicely from is now outsourcing. Where's the anger and outrage from Ross Perot of his creations(EDS) outsourcing.

AUGH! You are freakin' LUMBER DUMB. Perot no longer controls or has any significant influence over EDS! You would probably be asking John Browning to be railing against the guns he designed because some were used in crimes.

172 posted on 08/03/2003 10:15:56 AM PDT by Lazamataz (PROUDLY POSTING WITHOUT READING THE ARTICLE SINCE 1999!)
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To: LibertyAndJusticeForAll
But, how does a nation retrain millions of offshored degreed engineers....

Again, it's always somebody else's job to do this? These folks went to college. Some even to grad school. If they learned anything there at all, they'll be enterprising enough to discover what it means to be the captains of their own success. If they learned nothing and just went throught the motions, and glad handed their way through, that will be seen for what it is too.

Instead of waiting for a hand-out in a bread line, thinking that a "training program" comes from someone other than themselves, maybe they should look inwardly and see what it is about their skills-set they have to market and sell without someone having to think one up for them.

173 posted on 08/03/2003 10:16:06 AM PDT by Agamemnon
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To: raybbr
It didn't happen overnight(buggy whips going out of business), did it?

Uh basically it did. Henry Ford's Model T saw to that.

174 posted on 08/03/2003 10:20:48 AM PDT by Dane
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To: RockyMtnMan
This breaks the "trickle down" effect completely.

This from #120 got me wondering about the 'wealth' transfer that is taking place and whether or not a government, any government, ought to be condcerned about the revenue generating consequences of such transfers. Would my transferring $100,000 offshore go un-noticed by the feds? Just curious if the money sent abroad to pay wages is, or could be, treated as a type of export.

175 posted on 08/03/2003 10:21:01 AM PDT by budwiesest (Gladly, the cross-eyed bear.)
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To: RnMomof7
I do not like this any more than I liked moving the industry jobs to slave labor.I just think it is revealing to see how people react when it is them and not their neighbor

I don't think you were insinuating that I would approve of companies having their blue collar guys train indians who are here because of manipulated immigration laws to take their place.

However, just for the record, I'm not and never was of the mindset that corruption and immoral behavior is right.

176 posted on 08/03/2003 10:21:35 AM PDT by AAABEST
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To: raybbr
I ain't nevr bin to no kollij. But I manage to provide for my family. I'm in no immediate danger of being offshored, but I know my time is coming.

Oddly enough, the United States government is the only entity I ever worked for that judged me and cubby-holed me into a certain wage scale because I lack a college degree.

Or perhaps its not so odd; irony is one area in which government excels.
177 posted on 08/03/2003 10:21:52 AM PDT by Doohickey
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To: Dane
So, the car replaced the horse and buggy througout the United States in what, say a week, a month? I didn't know cars sold that fast back then. Or, were able to be produced that quickly.
178 posted on 08/03/2003 10:22:59 AM PDT by raybbr
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To: Doohickey
I ain't nevr bin to no kollij.

bin Kollij. Any relation to bin Laden?

179 posted on 08/03/2003 10:23:16 AM PDT by Lazamataz (PROUDLY POSTING WITHOUT READING THE ARTICLE SINCE 1999!)
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To: Doohickey
Okay, is reading your posts supposed to make my eyes water?
180 posted on 08/03/2003 10:24:59 AM PDT by raybbr
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