Job Loss Anger Should Fade

SAP Web site ^ | 7/30/2003 | Gartner Group

[leadpencil1]

The anger felt by American workers about high-tech jobs going to India will fade away in a couple of years. That’s the prediction from research company Gartner. The reason that the company believes the anger will ebb is that by then the global economy will have improved and unemployment levels will have decreased. Offshore outsourcing is now a “mega-trend” that will cause up to 10 percent of IT professionals in the US to lose their jobs by 2004. Despite bills passed in the US houses of government aimed at slowing or even stopping offshore outsourcing, none have been passed into law yet as American authorities tend not to interfere with the right of businesses to operate in the most competitive manner possible.

[TopDog2]

Gartner is wrong. People that have lost their jobs will never forget. Those that are now underemployed will never forget.

[monkeywrench]

"...American authorities tend not to interfere with the right of businesses to operate in the most competitive manner possible."

Then why all the regulation?

[TopDog2]

ping

[dfwgator]

The way I see it, by then we will be making a killing cleaning up all the crappy code left behind by the offshore programmers.

[sarcasm]

American voters will make it hard for politicians who ignore this anger.

[Cacophonous]

Half of me says you are right, and half of me looks at the people that elected Bill Clinton in 1992 and figured they had to do better in 1996. So much for faith in the memories and intelligence of the American public.

[dfwgator]

Then why all the regulation?

Because of all the NIMBYs.

[RogueIsland]

Offshore outsourcing is now a “mega-trend” that will cause up to 10 percent of IT professionals in the US to lose their jobs by 2004

It's already a much, much higher percentage than that in many of the big firms in the city where I work.

[TopDog2]

I thought about that, but this issue will be staring back at those affected in the mirror every morning. Hard to forget if you have a degree in computer science and are working at McDonalds...

[Cacophonous]

I hope you are right. It's about time people started to get pissed off, and about time they started to think for themselves, instead of marching lock-step where the party head tells them.

[Ed_in_NJ]

Ditto!

[leadpencil1]

I agree. 10% seems like too small a number. Also, consider this. The large corporations who are Gartner customers probably "commissioned" the study to help people just get over it already.

"Nothing to see here, just move along" kinda thing.

[Utah Girl]

The way I see it, by then we will be making a killing cleaning up all the crappy code left behind by the offshore programmers.

Yep. My former company is outsourcing whole projects to India now, much cheaper. However, the quality is questionable. I couldn't figure it out because most of the Indians I have worked with here were good coders. However, the turnover rate is 25% there, so there is no continuity whatsoever.

[neutrino]

The reason that the company believes the anger will ebb is that by then the global economy will have improved and unemployment levels will have decreased.

Perhaps (a big perhaps) the global economy will improve. But what, pray tell, will generate jobs for American workers? The TV's we produce? The VCR's? The clothing and textiles? The software? Oh, that's right - with the exception of software, we don't produce any of these. And in a few years, the same will be true of software.

As for Congress not wanting to regulate business of every sort, I find myself torn between laughter and tears. Need I mention affirmative action, the Americans with Disabilities Act, numerous reports required at every level of government, numerous regulations promulgated, again at every level of government, and licenses on top of permits, on top of filings?

(Sigh)

[Nick Danger]

I just got off the horn with Bhagat Vishveshwaraiah. He's offering to replace my Gartner subscription at one-third the price. I'll get the same research reports I'm getting now, plus access to Safal Consulting's wide array of subject-matter experts, including Dr. Sugata Mitra, the well-known computer scientist.

I gotta admit, outsourcing my industry research sounds like a great way to save money. Those Gartner people are OK, they just charge too much. Besides, I'm sure they're talented enough to find other work.

[Paul Ross]

Note the contradictory reasoning ...that inspite of the IT out-sourcing, (not to mention all the machine-tooling and high-tech manufacturing which is now stampeding to outsource...are squelching ALL THEIR U.S. CAPITAL INVESTMENTS AND PRODUCTION PLANS), but this smug study purports to know that the U.S. economy will have turned the corner in a few years. How is that going to happen when there is NO SIGN of a replacement industry to hire these victims of out-source-targetting? And by its own terms, the study projects that 10% of the present IT jobs in the US will be lost to out-sourcing in 2004.... uh, does the author of this study understand economics at all? Does he know what this will do to U.S. consumption and savings? [Down the toilet ]

And then, what will the U.S. 'manufacturers' plans be in response to this weakened U.S. demand? You got it, MORE OUTSOURCING-- reasons, take your pick: 'where the demand is' or 'in order to be more cost-competitive in the depressed U.S. market.' GM is outsourcing $10 billion a year in autoparts to China and the Rim. Motorola is putting all $10 billion of its Semiconductor & associated R&D plant investment marbles in China. IBM is relocating 3 million jobs to India.

This 'study' is purely junk science. There will be no 'Global Economy' rescue for the unemployable, over-priced, over-qualified and over-aged U.S. worker (anything over 30).

[leadpencil1]

LOL!

[dfwgator]

The Indians that make it over to the US are generally much better than the ones back in Mumbai. There are definately some very brilliant Indian coders with good communication skills, but they are in the minority.

[fooman]

Excellent point.