Posted on 02/03/2009 9:21:51 AM PST by COUNTrecount
The climate is warm, there's no shortage of exotic food, and the cost of living is rock bottom. That's IBM (NYSE: IBM)'s pitch to the laid-off American workers it's offering to place in India. The catch: Wages in the country are pennies-on-the-dollar compared to U.S. salaries. Under a program called Project Match, IBM will help workers laid off from domestic sites obtain travel and visa assistance for countries in which Big Blue has openings. Mostly that's developing markets like India, China, and Brazil.
His challenge? Creating open environment for Internet users without compromising information security and privacy."IBM has established Project Match to help you locate potential job opportunities in growth markets where your skills are in demand," IBM says in an internal notice on the initiative. "Should you accept a position in one of these countries, IBM offers financial assistance to offset moving costs, provides immigration support, such as visa assistance, and other support to help ease the transition of an international move." The document states that the program is limited to "satisfactory performers who have been notified of separation from IBM U.S. or Canada and are willing to work on local terms and conditions." The latter indicates that workers will be paid according to prevailing norms in the countries to which they relocate. In many cases, that could be substantially less than what they earned in North America.
IBM has laid off more than 4,000 workers in the United States since the beginning of January, according to an employee group. The company has confirmed layoffs but won't comment on specific numbers.
A spokesman for Alliance@IBM, a workers' group that's affiliated with the Communications Workers of America but which does not have official union status at IBM, slammed the program. "IBM is not only offshoring IBM U.S. jobs but they want employees to offshore themselves through Project Match," said the spokesman.
An IBM spokesman said the program shouldn't be seen in that light. "It's more of a vehicle for people who want to expand their life experience by working somewhere else," said the spokesman. "A lot of people want to work in India."
In addition to India, China, and Brazil, IBM is offering to relocate redundant U.S. workers to a number of other developing markets, including Mexico, the Czech Republic, Russia, South Africa, Nigeria, and the United Arab Emirates, according to the notice, which was obtained Monday by InformationWeek
It sounds like they are sending workers back home.
Brazil sounds OK.
Scrappleface must have a new URL...
Oh, yeah thats gonna work...not! People in India are already complaining that when they call for computer support they get some person in England or the States.
“A lot of people want to work in India.”
Yeah, until they get homesick for an American style toilet.
Indians will kill Americans who go there to take their jobs. Quite unlike the gentle treatment the Indians received from well mannered Americans.
Nigeria? I’m not sure about that one.
If these large corporations continue to send jobs overseas, then their goods should be hit with very high tariffs... to bad WTO, we don’t want to send everything we have to foreigners.
“IBM has laid off more than 4,000 workers in the United States since the beginning of January, according to an employee group.”
Some perspective — 4000 IBM workers amounts to about 1% of the workforce of close to 400,000 people.
I believe that HP has announced that they are laying off 10% of their people, and Novell recently announced that 25% were to be cut.
Ah yes...always a fly in the ointment
I'm pretty sure about it. It's on my "NO WAY" list. ;-)
I was actually offered a three-month procurement gig there in '03.
Didn't take it.
Do the bars have “happy hours” there? And how are the beaches?
Be the first kid on your block to move to a turd-world country and work for $hit wages.
There indeed are plenty of opportunties in India for both returning Indians and foreigners. The pay for engineers and professionals has increased a lot. IBM would not be the first company to lure back Indian’s to India. Working for a US company in India is a lot more favorable since they tend to be better and more fairly managed.
BTW. IBM in India mainly services Indian companies, Asian companies and European companies..not much US companies.
Bookmark for later.
If I was a single, White American guy, I’d take the offer to relocate in Brazil. In a heartbeat.
Just don’t get kidnapped.
I'm sure they will work for less than their American corporate executives couterparts....
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