Stop the Outsourcing of American Jobs

[Lunatic Fringe]

I am here to announce that an undisclosed American telecom company (huge, big, you'd know the name if you heard it, but I cannot disclose it) has decided to outsource most of its Help Desk and IT Administration jobs to India.

Folks, the only way this practice, greedy corporate executives sending jobs overseas to save a few bucks an hour, is going to end will be you demanding that Congress take action.

Don't get me wrong, I believe in free trade. I believe in Capitalism. But I also believe that corporate executives should have a responsibility to serve the interests of their nation as well.

I believe that the only way to limit the outsourcing of American jobs to overseas firms is to place a punitive tarriff on the importation of technical services. Make it so expensive to outsource the jobs, that companies think twice before they implement these "cost-saving" methods.

Write your Congressman. Make so much noise that they will have to listen. It's up to YOU.

[PattonReincarnated]

>> Will young people go into technical/medical/engineering programs at our universities if they do not believe there will be a job for them on the other side of that considerable investment?

Have you looked at the technical/medical/engineering programs these days at our universities? They are not filled with Americans. Apparently the rest of the world think there is something on the other side of the considerable investment. I work in IT - software engineering - and I tell you what, I'll pick a well educated individual over a poorly educated individual any day. But I will pay more for a well educated individual that communicates effectively in English. When it comes to technical endevours, and actually thinking about it more broadly, to any business endevour, the ability to communicate is essential.

BTW, Indians running a help desk do not communicate effectively, and help desk jobs are not the least bit technical.

[SoothingDave]

Like Walter E. Williams says, what people want is a law making it illegal for Americans to buy a product or a service from someone that will provide that product or service for a lower cost than someone else.

Right. He says "the enemy" (of the left) is the American peoples' desire to get more stuff for less money.

SD

[Modernman]

Like Walter E. Williams says, what people want is a law making it illegal for Americans to buy a product or a service from someone that will provide that product or service for a lower cost than someone else.

My dad was bitching the other day about how his parts suppliers mark up their products by 2-300% over their cost. He said they should be limited on how much of a profit they can make. When I asked him whether it would be okay with him if somebody limited HIS profit margin, he clammed up pretty quick.

[John H K]

The other thing about the protectionist paleo-con-men is that they also have Marxist zero-sum ideas about wealth and wealth generation.

They believe one countries' wealth automatically must come at the expense of another.

And that the prosperity of America is dependent on countries like India being impoverished. They're terrified of the idea that someday India might have a large middle and upper class, with per-capita incomes closer to the US than they are now...

You'll notice they have this weird idea that if third-world countries become wealthier it automatically means the US becomes impoverished.

I'd welcome it myself. India is a democracy, though a slightly creaky one, and I don't get my jollies seeing a billion people wallow in poverty. They're not going to progress out of poverty without trade in goods and services with the already-developed world.

[Theo]

Post the name of the company and let us decide. Let quality-conscious American citizens decide who gets their money, not necessarily the government.

It's pretty common for customers to find that Indian customer service reps are poorer quality than American CSRs.

In time, perhaps people will realize that there's better quality and perhaps in time mor money to be made by going with quality American rather than Chinese/India veneered plywood dorm furniture....

[Capitalism2003]

The way to solve this problem is not to pump up regulation...It is to lessen it, and dramatically reduce (or eliminate) all corporate taxes. Reduce the burden on entrepreneurs and make business in America an attractive idea again. I think we should eliminate the employer FICA "contribution" requirement...This will allow them an instant savings on all new employees they hire...We should also dump the corporate tax permanently, since it is simply passed on to employees in the form of layoffs, and customers in the form of higher prices.

Reducing government interference and burdens on corporations will solve this problem. Increasing regulation will simply make their actions even more justifiable.

[Protagoras]

It's always amazing to me to see those who claim to love freedom seeking to diminish it when they concider it in their best interests.

That's the problem with freedom, if you want to be free you have to let others be free as well. A major sticking point for many.

[jpsb]

[I believe in free trade]

Then you are a hypocrite, making labor a commodity (seeking the lowest cost) is the just one of the many benefits you get with free trade. You can't be for free trade and aginst out sourcing, they are one in the same.

[HeadOn]

"I believe that the only way to limit the outsourcing of American jobs to overseas firms is to place a punitive tarriff on the importation of technical services. Make it so
expensive to outsource the jobs, that companies think twice before they implement these "cost-saving" methods. "

Well, you are correct - expensive labor will be avoided. That's why minimum and living wages may not be such a good idea.

Now - if we stopped paying welfare recipients to stay home for more money than they could make at a low-wage job, we might have more laborers to fill the jobs that don't pay so much, and not need to worry about outsourcing.

You can't have both high pay and keep all jobs. Nobody wants to pay big money (plus fringes) to a grown man to sweep the parking lot when they can get a teenager to do it for $5 per hour. The same reasoning works for who you want to pay for answering a phone.

I happen to know that many times, the folks in these other countries treat our "menial" jobs as a source of great pride, and work hard to do a good job because they consider themselves professionals.

There is no simple fix for this. Are companies "greedy" for wanting to maximize profits? Maybe. Are Americans "lazy" for refusing low-wage jobs? Maybe. This is NOT a one-sided argument.

[philosofy123]

If I was on the board of directors of say Disney, I would go to Mr. Eisner, and say: You are fired! That saves the company $300 million dollars. I go and import an Indian MBA, pay him $20K/year - he will work 24 X 7, and streamline the whole operation. The bastard at the top don't give a sh*t about the ignorant on the bottom - simply because the regular workers do not have union protection anymore. Why is it when a company is trying to save money they would never fire the pres, AND VPs? Do you suppose these idiots on top, who spend most of their days playing golf and having martini lunches, are indispensable?

If a company can wholesale fires all of its IT employee, who are earning on the average $50k/year and hand out the work to overseas peasants who are happy to make $10K/year (Indian engineers typically earn $2K/year), and this company does not get exposed as a traitor , fascist, irresponsible, and Satan himself, then why do they care. Blame the Government and media. Most business people would love to make money even if they have to kill people in the process. Ethics and patriotism have long been lost. If our media is taken away, and our government is working for the rich and influential, then we are doomed.

[hirn_man]

I think you are confusing a job with a welfare program.

You want to be free to work for anyone who will hire you, and you will probably go to whoever is offering the most money, but somehow the employer can't staff his company with employees that he pays less for than you.

Like it or not, the work you produce for an employer is a commodity. You are not you're job.

And I currently don't have a job. My boss laid me off a couple of days before he went to India to check out offshoring oppurtunities.

I will find someplace else to work and I will work there until I either find something better to do, or my boss decides I am no longer needed. Its a two way street.

[Theo]

Do you think laws against monopolies are wrong? I could see how one could argue that there's a similarity between monopoly laws and import/export laws....

[Deliberator]

Why should I be forced to pay more for services so somebody else and their kids can enjoy a higher quality of life? Sounds like welfarism to me.

If you want to have a society, there must be some amount of association with others.

"Some amount of association with others" does not necessarily imply paying more for services so somebody else and their kids can enjoy a higher quality of life.

Besides, when there is no longer enough talent in this country to do what you want to do, to make those fantastic weapons we used in Iraq to keep you safe, what will you do?

I support protection of genuinely militarily critical skills and technology. Help desks don't qualify.

What will you do when people here can no longer afford the products you'd like them to buy?

IF that happened, I'd sell the products to Indians.

[elfman2]

"Don't get me wrong, I believe in free trade. I believe in Capitalism. But I also believe that corporate executives should have a responsibility to serve the interests of their nation as well. "

They serve their nation by:

- Having 3rd world nations work rather than beg for aid
- Teaching people around the world about capitalism
- Locking industry in free democratic nations into US interests
- Farming out crappy jobs like help desk to people willing to do anything for a chance. (I know there are others, don’t start that crap.)

It’s a huge pain to manage overseas outsourcing as business changes, and there has to be a big basic payoff for it to make sense. By the time India becomes successful enough to challenge us, their salaries will be comparable. I hate the short sightedness of these luddites. “Buy American” is UN-American

[1rudeboy]

I could see how one could argue that there's a similarity between monopoly laws and import/export laws....

I don't. Please indulge me.

[elfman2]

" IF that happened [Americans can’t buy anything], I'd sell the products to Indians."

LOL! Great answer!

[Capitalism2003]

"Disclose the name of the companies that send jobs overseas and let the consumers decide if they want to buy their goods and services. I'd much rather by a (name the item) at a higher price if it were manufactured in the USA."

You mean, you don't want to increase the power of GOVERNMENT to regulate and penalize people who go into business? *GASP!* You don't want to increase the burden on companies that go overseas precisely because they are ALREADY overburdened by the government?? Why...you must be one of those true conservatives...one of those whackos that believe INDIVIDUALS should have the ultimate decision on what corporate behavior they accept and support. You actually want people to voluntarily organize around this issue...You think its a good idea for people to organize "Buy American" campaigns and support voluntary boycotts against corporations that oursource jobs.. I can't believe it...You want to deal with this issue WITHOUT bringing GOVERNMENT into the equation!! You actually want to inform the public about the situation and let them make their own decisions about where to shop and where not to shop... You don't want to continue the exponential expansion of laws and regulations burderning business owners today.. You prefer choice over regulation... freedom over compulsion.. You want to let the people decide!!! What crazy ideas...

[Modernman]

Do you think laws against monopolies are wrong?

Let's make one point clear: A monopoly is perfectly legal in America, so long as it is a so-called "Natural Monopoly." If AcmeCorp. makes the best mousetrap and people only buy their mousetraps from AcmeCorp., that is perfectly legal.

It's only a violation of our anti-trust laws if AcmeCorp. uses its monopoly status to keep other companies from competing (for example, by selling its mousetrap below its cost of production so as to drive a competitor bankrupt).

[brownsfan]

Besides, when there is no longer enough talent in this country to do what you want to do, to make those fantastic weapons we used in Iraq to keep you safe

Our advanced weapons industry is based maintaining an indigenous personal computer tech-support capability?

I'll assume you are bright enough to see a bigger scope, and you are nit picking to get my goat?

[hirn_man]

Oh and while were at it, why should we just stop at moving jobs overseas?

My primary IT responsibilities deal with mainframes.

Lets just not allow Unix/Linux/Windows operating systems so I can maintain MY standard of living.