Posted on 12/01/2002 3:11:24 PM PST by FR_addict
Techies Sound Off on Offshoring by Allan Hoffman Monster Tech Jobs Expert US technology professionals who were job-hopping and earning hefty bonuses just a few years ago now face an uncertain future, their career prospects roiled by offshoring -- the outsourcing of IT work to companies in India and other nations.
Frustrated by the willingness of US companies to shed workers and ship work overseas, techies are expressing their dissatisfaction in phone calls to industry organizations, emails to legislators and posts to online discussion forums. Some techies say political action is required to blunt the trend's effects, while others say offshoring is irreversible, the result of unbridled capitalism without regard for workers and their communities.
More on Offshoring
This article is the third installment of a three-part series about offshoring. Is it a threat to IT careers or an opportunity for advancement? Post your comments in the Tech Jobs message board.
Part one, "Are Tech Jobs Headed Offshore?," explores what technology executives think about offshoring and its impact on North American IT projects and staff.
Part two, "If Offshoring, Then What's Next for Techies?" asks tech execs for their perspective on the effect of this trend on tech careers -- and what techies should do to respond.
"There's a lot of complacency and apathy and fear, in terms of what to do," says Marcus Courtney, cofounder and president of WashTech, a union for high tech employees. "We can no longer afford to be complacent."
Techies Sound Off
Two recent Monster articles about offshoring garnered hundreds of messages in Monster's Technology Forum, mostly decrying the trend. With titles such as "Exporting Our Future" and "Shipping High Tech Out," the posts give voice to the anxiety and anger of techies who have lost jobs or seen prospects for advancement recede.
"I think this is a deplorable trend," wrote one Monster member. "It is an attempt to beat down the salaries on nonmanagement jobs to the level of unskilled workers … [so] there will be no reason for workers to expend the effort and expense in obtaining a high tech education."
Ed Marx, a programmer from Middletown, New Jersey, says he was considering a career change, perhaps into teaching, after being laid off as "a direct result of an offshore initiative." He was unemployed for several months, until he found a contract position.
Like others, Marx -- with 26 years of industry experience -- was caught off guard by the speed of the IT turnaround. "It was such a vital, in-demand kind of skill," he says. In 2000, Congress increased the number of visas available for foreign techies. "It surprises me that it could turn around in two years. I guess they just changed the strategy -- not to bring the people to the work, but bring the work to the people."
No Job Gain -- No Job Training
Another Monster member, Richard, posted a message in Monster's Technology Forum about being laid off when his job was sent to Juarez, Mexico. A federal training grant for individuals whose jobs were lost to Mexico was unavailable to him. The reason? The grants only apply to manufacturing jobs, not service positions.
"I would think the government should be just as concerned with the software industry as they are with manufacturing," says Richard, a programmer from Colorado Springs, Colorado, who is now seeking training in .NET and Web services.
Janet Ruhl, who surveys IT salaries at Realrates.com, says her data indicates declining employment among consultants, even those with up-to-date skills.
"Anecdotally, what I am hearing is that companies that have had long-term relationships with consultants -- 10 years and more in some cases -- have suddenly shifted their entire IT function abroad, leaving those consultants high and dry," she says. "The explanation is always cost."
Of course, not all techies see offshoring as an unremitting danger. "The truth is, most companies will pay a premium for face-to-face software and Web development, and most IT jobs should remain in the US," says Eric Leung, a Web developer from Long Beach, California, who believes "offshoring's bark is likely louder than its bite."
Craig Connell, who serves on the board of the Programmers Guild -- many of whose members oppose offshoring -- questions the usefulness of some proposals, such as a tariff on foreign software.
Time To Organize?
But Sharon Marsh Roberts, chairperson of the government relations committee of the Independent Computer Consultants Association, says programmers have to be ready for political action -- and compromise -- in order to effect change.
Techies must organize and gain representation, says WashTech's Courtney. "I don't believe that enough workers, at this point, understand what this trend means for the long-term picture of this industry in this country," he says.
"This is the warning bell. Something is amiss here, and it isn't just isolated to customer service or email support workers," Courtney continues. "It could happen to you, and we need to make sure we have a voice over what this means for the future of our industry."
But if the company can do it for 1/4 of the price it would take to hire Americans then they view it as a savings. Unfortunately we're a victim of shortsightedness.
Right there with you, man. The American dream is NOT to live like a third world country to compete with them on wages. There has to be another way.
You want fries with that?
/john
There is.
Be Excellent.
I consult for many of the largest IT Departments in the country. In almost every case, they are staffed by 10-to 20 excellent well trained and disiplined staff, and the other 80 to 90 percent are worthless wannabe's who would rather collect software and porn on their company's computers than to improve their skills.
I'm the guy who comes in and recommends who should be fired, who is worth training, and who is good enough to keep. Most people in IT dont know enough beyond being a danger to their company. This goes double for people working on homogenious Windows networks.
Excellent IT workers never have to fear unemployment. Their companies depend on them, and pay them almost whatever they ask. The problem is that it is hard to be excellent at IT, and a lot of people are sold a bill of goods by one of those fly-by-night technical training schools, who give out certifications just for showing up.
Yes and bad things never happen to good people, all Saturdays have excellent weather, and the sensitive, caring guy always gets the girl.
No American IT worker is so good, so irreplaceable (unless he is maintaining some legacy system written in Latin) that he cannot be replaced with an H1b who is every bit as smart and technical as he and will work for very much less.
When they came for the auto workers, I did not cry out because I was not an auto worker. When they came for the steel workers I did not cry out because I was not a steel worker. When they came for the textile workers, I did not cry out because I was not a textile worker. When they came for the middle managers, I did not cry out because I was not a middle manager. When they finally came for us techies there was no one left to cry out.
From what we have observed, eventually these jobs will be back 'home' because the productivity is not there nor is the skill set required.
Unfortunately, man years of talent will have been lost.
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