Bad publicity can have good results when it forces politicians to do the
right thing. In Arizona, ABC TV-15 ran a series called "Lost to India"
about
how call center jobs for the state welfare system were being outsourced to
India. The re****t caused a furor in Arizona that prompted politicians to
propose a bill to limit the outsourcing.
The interview with Gov. Janet Napolitano is a classic!
A recent follow-up to the newscast is now online. I highly recommend you
watch the entire series, beginning with the Emmy Award winning show that
aired last year.
Find this videos here:
http://www.zazona.com/shameh1b/MediaClips.htm
2004 4/30 ABC KNXV15 Investigators - "Lost to India"
2004 7/23 ABC KNXV15 Investigators - "Working Conditions"
2005 1/23 ABC KNXV15 Investigators - "Lost to India - Aftermath"
To keep informed on issues like this, sign up for a free email subcription
to the "Job Destruction Newsletter" by going to this page:
http://www.zazona.com/shameh1b/JobDestructionNews.htm
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http://phoenix.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2005/01/24/daily28.html
January 25, 2005
Bill proposed to prohibit 'offshoring' of state contracts
Mike Sunnucks
The Business Journal
A measure has been put forward at the state Legislature prohibiting the
foreign outsourcing of state government work.
The legislation is sponsored by three conservative Republicans and 18
Democrats.
It prohibits the state from entering into contracts or taking other
actions
that results in state government jobs, contract positions or other work
being ****pped outside the United States. Similar measures are afoot in
other
states and face strong business opposition.
The Arizona bill would not restrict private companies from moving jobs
offshore.
Foreign outsourcing and offshoring of private and public sector jobs has
been a hot political potato in recent years, with U.S. jobs being moved to
cheaper foreign labor markets, namely China and India.
Last year, Gov. Janet Napolitano issued a directive banning foreign
outsourcing in state contracts after it was learned some welfare-related
customer service work was being done offshore by private subcontractors.
Business interests are generally opposed to state prohibitions and
restrictions on foreign outsourcing and offshoring.
The Arizona Chamber of Commerce subtly refers to outsourcing fervor in its
2005 agenda stating that "state tax, regulatory and procurement policies
must recognize the global integration of today's companies and information
systems."
"We believe that the outsourcing issue is misunderstood and it's not as
easy
as "job A" is outsourced to India," said state chamber vice president
Farrell Quinlan.
Outsourcing defenders argue the movement of jobs overseas is part of
global
economic trends and integrating U.S. and Arizona companies into new
markets.
Some business groups, such as the National Association of Manufacturers,
also contend that high health care, regulatory, insurance and legal costs
in
the United States make foreign markets more affordable.
Critics, including labor unions, counter that its large cor****ations
dumping
American workers for cheaper counterparts in India and China.
Major Arizona employers that have outsourced or offshored jobs include
Best
Western International, Intel, IBM, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase/Bank
One
and Honeywell International
Sponsors of the Arizona government outsourcing ban include conservative
Republican State Sens. Karen Johnson and Robert Blendu as well as
Democratic
state Sens. Victor Soltero, Bill Brotherton and Harry Mitchell and state
Reps. Meg Burton Cahill, Pete Rios and Kyrsten Sinema.
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http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/0202offshorebill02.html
Measure would keep state jobs in U.S.
New law would prevent use of any foreign labor
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 2, 2005 12:00 AM
A bipartisan group of state legislators has introduced a bill to prevent
any
state jobs, including those contracted out, from being performed in
foreign
countries.
If passed, Senate Bill 1266 would write into law a state directive issued
in
April that prevents the use of foreign labor for work done under state
contracts.
The bill's lead sponsor is Democrat Victor Soltero, but a host of other
legislators, including three Republicans, have signed on. It would prevent
any state agency, board, commission or department from "entering into an
agreement or perform any act that results in a state service position
being
directly or indirectly established or transferred outside of the United
States."
It goes on to clarify that any state service position applies to work done
by contractors and subcontractors.
In April, John Adler, the state procurement administrator, issued a
directive that prohibits any work performed under state contract from
being
done outside the United States. But the directive did not apply to work
that
wasn't directly related to the contract, such as payroll services or data
backup in other countries.
State officials could not place a dollar amount on how the policy change
will cost taxpayers but it could increase the cost of some contracts, said
Alan Ecker, spokesman for the state Department of Administration.
"Potentially it will result in increased costs to contracts," he said.
"But
it's more im****tant to keep the jobs and work within borders of the U.S."
Business groups have not said whether they will oppose the bill but the
executive director of the Arizona Association for Economic Development
said
such bills often have unintended consequences, such as retaliation from
other countries that could hurt U.S. businesses or higher costs to
taxpayers.
"Any legislative solutions of this sort cuts both ways," John Bowers said.
"There are advantages, but invariably there's another side to it."
Soltero, from Tucson, feels strongly that no taxpayer-sup****ted jobs
should
be done outside the United States.
"My preference is that they be done in the state, but I don't think
anybody
has concerns as long as they are done in the U.S.," he said.
Sen. Robert Blendu, a Republican, signed on to the bill because he
considers
it a security issue.
"The business of Arizona belongs in Arizona," he said.
The bill comes on the heels of revelations last year that public phone
calls
to a call center providing service on welfare benefits was being routed to
India or Mexico. That work was being done by subcontractor eFunds Corp., a
Scottsdale-based firm that provides customer sup****t to clients.
The uproar led to the state policy change. No other state contracts were
affected by the change.
EFunds is no longer a state subcontractor after the prime contractor was
acquired by another contract, which did not renew the eFunds contract. In
fact, the eFunds work was brought back to the United States in
mid-November,
state Department of Economic Security spokeswoman Liz Barker said.
"EFunds is not handling any part of our contract," she said.
Forrester Research Inc. predicted last year that 3.4 million U.S. service
jobs would move offshore by 2015.
A Greater Phoenix Economic Council analysis found that 14.4 percent of
Valley jobs were vulnerable to being moved abroad.
Nationally, about 12.8 percent of service jobs were vulnerable.
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