Aug
26
Business for many business process outsourcing (BPO) and information technology enabled services (ITES) companies in India and Philippines is being jeopardized by pending state legislature in the United States.
BPO brings big business to both India and the Philippines.
India’s BPO and ITES industries earned USD40.4 billion in revenue last fiscal year.
The Business Process Outsourcing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) reports that the local industry earned USD5.8 billion in the first semester of 2008, well on its way to meet the industry’s projected full year revenue of USD6.8 billion.
However, several pending bills that will prevent jobs from being off-shored away from Americans can take a big bite out these annual revenue earnings.
Riding on the wave of the coming US Presidential elections this November 2008, detractors of off-shore outsourcing can fuel focus of the American public on the current economic recession and lack of jobs. As it is, some US states such as Arizona and New York have pending legislature to restrict government agencies from acquiring goods and services off-shore and can prevent these agencies to deal with private US companies who have off-shore suppliers.
Other states like Massachusetts and Nevada are processing legislature that can restrict call center and contact services operations within US borders.
Most of the pending anti-outsourcing legislation relates to tax breaks and incentives for US companies that create jobs in their respective states or across the United States. Some bills also impose that only US citizens are to be employed and authorized to handle on identity-dependent information of US citizens.
Despite this, outsourcing industry leaders especially those in India anticipate that such legislation will not fly high.
This outlook has precedence, a similar boost for anti-outsourcing in US state legislature was seen during the 2003-2004 US elections but this was off-set as many large US companies lobby for greater access to the world’s pool of talent to acquire high-value skills not found at home.
“If the US does not have sufficient skilled human resources, then they have to get their work done in countries where there are sufficient resources. Further, studies have shown that outsourcing has only increased economic activity in the US.”
According to India’s National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) President, Som Mittal.
If some of these state legislature do get passed and implemented, it is also foreseen that these will have minimal impact on the global outsourcing industry as member firms of the BPO and ITES industries will just have to adjust their business practices to weather the political tide… until the next elections.
References:
- “60 anti-BPO laws in US.” 6 February 2004. BS Corporate Bureau in Mumbai, rediff.com. Accessed 26 August 2008. Link here
- “Anti-outsourcing efforts down but not out.” April 2007. National Foundation for American Policy. Accessed 26 August 2008. Link here
- Lison, Joseph. “Trouble for BPOs as American states mull no-outsourcing laws.” 25 August 2008. The Wall Street Journal, Livemint.com. Accessed 26 August 2008. Link here
- Osorio, Ma. Elisa. “O&O industry earns $5.8B in first semester.” 12 August 2008. The Philippine Star. Accessed 26 August 2008. Link here
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