BOYCOTT OUTSOURCING!!

[Isla]

What I find disturbing is that highly intelligent, innovated people who have degrees in engineering (electrical and computer) like my husband have to worry about having their jobs cut so that the company can have a higher profit margin by hiring 'cheaper labor'. And they do get what they pay for. In general, the software comes back from overseas and it's clear that the programmers didn't really understand what it was needed for. For now, my husband still has his job because he's in charge of actually getting the stuff to work once it gets here. But he would LOVE to be able to get it done right, himself, the first time!

And improving job market my hind end. The majority of the new jobs are at the lower end of the spectrum. So what does my husband have to do... get training to be in retail sales?

No amount of sugar coating is going to change the fact that Free Trade has been an experiment with not-so-great results.

 

[Isla]

BTW, that editorial is extremely off the mark.

Around here, many people have lost their IT jobs to outsourcing/offshoring. Until it happens to you, and you actually see the effects, it's hard to believe. Big businesses love it and are all for it, and will find all kinds of ways to say it's really a good thing... it benefits corporations, and that's all they care about.

 

[vi edit]

Ultimately it's our own fault as consumers - same thing with walmart. Yeah, you can all say we vote with our wallet, but really the only way a vast majority of us REALLY vote is by casting that vote to the company with the lowest price.

Until people are willing to start paying more for something, the trend is going to continue. There's only so many ways a company can cut costs and still make make a profit.

People have already "voted with their wallets" and that's why we are where we are. It won't go back until a large enough group of consumers stands up and says "Bring our jobs back, we'll pay more if you do it". And then actually follow through on that promise to pay more.

 

[Isla]

You're right, Vi_Edit.

We've been boycotting WalMart for almost 2 years now... and we make an effort to buy US made products. That's not so easy, most stuff isn't made here anymore!

You have to put your money where your mouth is, so to speak.

 

[Turin39789]

Haven't set foot in a walmart in years, been out at picket lines with auto workers, helped out with union efforts, and I'm just a crummy out of work white collar IT 22 year old. Damn me for being so short-sighted and stupid

 

[Dimkaumd]

I dont understand why people are complaining. outsourcing is completely legitimate. It may suck to get fired and be replaced with someone from Banglapore, but it doesnt mean its wrong. I have to agree with OS's comparative advantage point, most of the work that is being sent overseas is computer languages that have been developed a long time ago and there is no incentive for employers to pay extra $ to americans to do the same job indians can do for 1/5 the cost. people have to understand that they do not have a right to a job, your employer is doing you a favor by hiring you, if you do not like their policy do not work for them. by agreeing to work for a certain company your essentially selling them your services. There is no reason why they should pay you fives times more for your services than they can pay someone else. If anything, if you get fired due to the fact that your position was outsources, go to the bookstore get a new the latest computer book, and educate yourself so that you can do new things and earn more money. stop biatching!

 

[Brazen]

Originally posted by: Dimkaumd
I dont understand why people are complaining. outsourcing is completely legitimate. It may suck to get fired and be replaced with someone from Banglapore, but it doesnt mean its wrong. I have to agree with OS's comparative advantage point, most of the work that is being sent overseas is computer languages that have been developed a long time ago and there is no incentive for employers to pay extra $ to americans to do the same job indians can do for 1/5 the cost. people have to understand that they do not have a right to a job, your employer is doing you a favor by hiring you, if you do not like their policy do not work for them. by agreeing to work for a certain company your essentially selling them your services. There is no reason why they should pay you fives times more for your services than they can pay someone else. If anything, if you get fired due to the fact that your position was outsources, go to the bookstore get a new the latest computer book, and educate yourself so that you can do new things and earn more money. stop biatching!

Unfortunately, it doesn't work ANYTHING like that. Right now the employee market is saturated with IT people who have already read the book and applied it for 5, 10, or more years in a job until they were fired and their job OUTSOURCED.

And I whole-heartedly agree with OS's point that we are falling behind in our "comparative advantage" in human capital, and outsourcing is only making it worse. YES, it's legit, but the whole point is it is not good for America, especially the IT segment of America - in which I have a particular interest.

 

[DeeKnow]

Originally posted by: Brazen
Here is a good article.

Company outsources IT overseas.
Company loses money due to poor quality of IT.
Company loses money due to outsourcing being more expensive in the long run.
Company either insources before it is too late or dies.

Overseas outsourcing is a plague.



note: I have a very fine job in no danger of being outsourced, so I am not bitter. I am just looking out for the future of the American people. Other countries should be outsourcing to US for crying out loud!

::edited for minor spelling mistake

i'm so tired of people bitching about outsourcing and offshoring...

Outsourcing and offshoring is just about the only thing holding up the stock market these days (and with that, your 401k plans etc).

If you don't like it, vote with your wallets - don't buy anything at Wal Mart that is made in China or Mexico (you might as well not go to Wal Mart then), don't buy a Dell computer, don't buy Intel chips made in Malaysia... , don't buy software made in India.....

 

[Rob9874]

I think the burden rate for a Malaysian employee is 1/4 that of a US employee. If Intel started making all chips in the US, but charged 4X more for them, would you buy them? People can bitch and complain all they want about outsourcing, but don't blink an eye when they buy a cheap widget over an expensive one that's made in the US.

Every time you buy something cheap, and are bragging about the great deal you got, think about how you may be encouraging a company to continue paying for cheap overseas labor.

 

[Brazen]

Originally posted by: DeeKnow

i'm so tired of people bitching about outsourcing and offshoring...

What do you expect in a thread about boycotting outsourcing? Would you show up at the DNC and gripe "I'm so tired of people bitching about GW Bush and Republicans?"

 

[Garet Jax]

Originally posted by: Brazen

Originally posted by: Jzero
Outsourcing = :thumbsdown:
Offshoring = :thumbsup:

Why would other countries outsource to the US, anyway? Labor is more expensive in the US!

Because the US has more technological know-how than any other country... not a fact, but highly arguable.

They have more original thought that eminates from the States (through huge R&D here), but America's children are no more exposed to technology than a lot of other countries' children.

 

[welst10]

Originally posted by: Isla
BTW, that editorial is extremely off the mark.

Around here, many people have lost their IT jobs to outsourcing/offshoring. Until it happens to you, and you actually see the effects, it's hard to believe. Big businesses love it and are all for it, and will find all kinds of ways to say it's really a good thing... it benefits corporations, and that's all they care about.

If it bebefits corporations, it benefits workers. More profitable corporations = bigger return to investers, bigger corportion expenses, more expansion, more hiring, better beenfits for workers, etc.

 

[phantom309]

Originally posted by: civad

The worst part is when I have to talk to some Indian on the phone and I can't understand a thing he says.

The feeling must be mutual. They cannot understand what you say, either. Stop being so picky and try to listen to what the other person is trying to say. Nothing personal here.

Uh, except that WE ARE PAYING THEM TO COMMUNICATE WITH US, not the other way around.

 

[torpid]

Well I'm going to blame something completely different for our problems of comparative not much betterness... I think our IT educational system is failing us. It's possible things have improved markedly since I last was in school, but I doubt it. I went to one of the top 10 universities for computer science. I got lots of useful theory and "data". But I learned no skills that would help differentiate me from someone who did nothing but read computer books.

Often times the problems we might face with offshore work are the same problems we face here with our own people. Maybe not as severe, but still. The real problem is that we haven't adapted the skills we teach or expect as we learn more about IT. The cowboy programmer is still the norm. Yeah sure, in classes you work with teammates, but unless your school is way different than mine, it's a laughable way to teach how a real team might work. You are taught to comment your code, but not to document it properly. You're taught how to do an assignment, but not how to complete a real project.

 

[yukichigai]

Originally posted by: welst10

Originally posted by: Isla
BTW, that editorial is extremely off the mark.

Around here, many people have lost their IT jobs to outsourcing/offshoring. Until it happens to you, and you actually see the effects, it's hard to believe. Big businesses love it and are all for it, and will find all kinds of ways to say it's really a good thing... it benefits corporations, and that's all they care about.

If it bebefits corporations, it benefits workers. More profitable corporations = bigger return to investers, bigger corportion expenses, more expansion, more hiring, better beenfits for workers, etc.

The flaw in that argument is that all the workers are overseas.

If you're a grunt or a corporate exec, outsourcing is great for you. But if you specialize in IT, tech support, etc. then you're screwed. It may benefit a certain segment of the work force but at the expense of almost eliminating another segment of the work force.

 

[phantom309]

Originally posted by: welst10

Originally posted by: Isla
BTW, that editorial is extremely off the mark.

Around here, many people have lost their IT jobs to outsourcing/offshoring. Until it happens to you, and you actually see the effects, it's hard to believe. Big businesses love it and are all for it, and will find all kinds of ways to say it's really a good thing... it benefits corporations, and that's all they care about.

If it bebefits corporations, it benefits workers. More profitable corporations = bigger return to investers, bigger corportion expenses, more expansion, more hiring, better beenfits for workers, etc.

Yes, except the only Americans who will benefit will be the CEOs and stockholders. All the expansion, hiring, benefits, etc will happen in Bangalore. And our politicians will brag about our wonderful economic recovery and soaring stock market while our middle class vanishes.

 

[welst10]

Originally posted by: yukichigai

Originally posted by: welst10

Originally posted by: Isla
BTW, that editorial is extremely off the mark.

Around here, many people have lost their IT jobs to outsourcing/offshoring. Until it happens to you, and you actually see the effects, it's hard to believe. Big businesses love it and are all for it, and will find all kinds of ways to say it's really a good thing... it benefits corporations, and that's all they care about.

If it bebefits corporations, it benefits workers. More profitable corporations = bigger return to investers, bigger corportion expenses, more expansion, more hiring, better beenfits for workers, etc.

The flaw in that argument is that all the workers are overseas.

If you're a grunt or a corporate exec, outsourcing is great for you. But if you specialize in IT, tech support, etc. then you're screwed. It may benefit a certain segment of the work force but at the expense of almost eliminating another segment of the work force.

untrue. Only a small portion are overseas. The rest majority who're in the US get better benefits as the company becomes more profitable.

 

[Brazen]

Originally posted by: yukichigai

If you're a grunt or a corporate exec, outsourcing is great for you. But if you specialize in IT, tech support, etc. then you're screwed. It may benefit a certain segment of the work force but at the expense of almost eliminating another segment of the work force.

And I doubt the grunts are the ones benefitting...

 

[NickelTitanium]

Too bad folx. If you have a business, then you would outsource too. MADE IN THE USA need not apply with anything nowadays. I like farmer BOB going out to buy a Ford 'cause its American and not realize that half the parts are from overseas.

 

[yukichigai]

Originally posted by: welst10

Originally posted by: yukichigai
The flaw in that argument is that all the workers are overseas.

If you're a grunt or a corporate exec, outsourcing is great for you. But if you specialize in IT, tech support, etc. then you're screwed. It may benefit a certain segment of the work force but at the expense of almost eliminating another segment of the work force.

untrue. Only a small portion are overseas. The rest majority who're in the US get better benefits as the company becomes more profitable.

Have you been brainwashed? Were you not paying attention to the news for the past year? More and more major companies are outsourcing large portions of their tech support centers. It's not a small portion. Case in point: AOL. I challenge you to get tech support for AOL that isn't in Bangalor.

The theory you're using is called "trickle-down economics." It's been proven time and time again to be disastrously wrong for the most part. While it is true that some benifits will come to the workers by and far most of it does not.