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What Should a Documentary Filmmaker Ask About Offshoring?

Posted by Roblimo on from the help-make-a-movie dept.

Philadelphia-area development economics and finance student Rachel Anderika and her associate, programmer/filmmaker Krishnan, are making a documentary about the effects of offshore outsourcing. Their "still under construction" Web site, Project Outsourced, gives you more information about their work. They're interviewing economists, bankers, anti-outsourcing advocacy groups, pro-outsourcing CEOs, columnists, and others. Where you come in is helping Rachel and Krishnan come up with good questions to ask. We'll forward 10 - 15 of the highest-moderated ones posted here (within the next 24 hours) to them. Expect summaries (and possibly audio or video clips) of the answers in late May, and news about the finished film this Fall.

16 of 1,091 comments (clear)

  1. What field next by onyxruby · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The one question I have never been able to get a straight answer on. What field should the millions of displaced American IT workers get trained in?

    It is always sais that people should be responsbile and learn new skills and train in a new field. When the farm economy shifted to manufacturing, people learned factory work. When manufacturing started to be offshored people were advised to get into IT. What field should people start to train in? Bush talks about training displaced workers, but I haven't heard anything about what their supposed to train in. What is the next new economy, retail?

    1. Re:What field next by cluckshot · · Score: 4, Interesting

      The parent here is a fool lost in the smokescreen the "Outsourcing" crowd puts out. Nurses don't earn that kind of money in the first place except in extremely high priced regions like San Francisco. Second the industry is outsourcing. You see I am an RN who left the profession because of outsourcing and the criminally bad management of the industry. I retrained as Software Engineer.

      The "Shortage" of Nurses is entirely smoke and mirrors put out to justify what currently is UNLIMITED H-2 visas being issued by the BICS for NURSES. They even took 3 years as work in any medical field as equal to 1 year of College for RN. Thus you could have someone soon caring for you who knows nothing about nursing except cleaning beds. But Ignorant fools like the parent of this post will not learn until it is they themselves who get no care or are hurt. By then they will be too weak and too broke to be able to fuss.

      I personally watched in Nashville Tn while the heads of Columbia HCA were arrested for RICO Violations in a "No Knock Raid" on their HQ near Centennial Park. I have seen their actions first hand and know how illegal they are. The claims of Nursing Shortages and High Wages are put out by people those kind of people.

      --
      Never Politically Correct ~ I prefer the facts If you don't like what I say, get a life, or comment yourself.
    2. Re:What field next by seichert · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Anecdote : I know one guy, at my local gun club, who lost his job to 2 people in India and 1 in Mexico. It was literally cheaper to hire 3 people than to keep paying him to do this particular IT job. He had a life long interest in automotive electrical systems and decided to pursue a 2 year degree from a local community college. His reasoning : 1) You can't outsource car repair to India, 2) There is high demand for a person with skills in this area, 3) He really loves doing it. I also read another article recently about demand for automotive technicians being quite high and supply being quite low. The article suggested that this situation was the result of a generation of parents not wanting their kids to grow up to become "grease monkeys". These parents did not realize that automotive technicians are really computer technicians (as most modern vehicles are computer controlled) and can earn a comparable salary to an I/T person. There are many great good paying careers outside of I/T. If you think that your days as an I/T person are over then it would be worth it to look around.

      --

      Stuart Eichert

    3. Re:What field next by cluckshot · · Score: 4, Interesting

      The most rational set of questions to ask start with the most imporant ones to Investors.

      [1] How many dollars of dividends has your company been able to pay to their shareholders as a result of "Outsourcing?"

      [2] How much has your compensation risen including all factors since you began "Outsourcing?"

      [3] How many dollars of payroll did you save as a result of "Outsourcing?" Be sure to include any Executive Raises as countervailing factors.

      [4] Have you had any of your Intellectual Capital Stolen as a result of "Outsourcing." This is probably the biggest and worst part but it never gets talk.

      [5] What Liability does my company incurr if data handled in "Outsourced" facilities is diverted to ILLEGAL Purposes such as Identity theft?

      [6] What legal devices do we have to deal with employees who misuse data we "Outsource" the processing and service of.

      [7] If the data or programming serviced is "Outsourced" what does it do to National Security. This is a common problem with Defense Contractors now. Most outsourcing functionally becomes Industrial Spying for the company Hired to service in the other country.

      [8] Does outsourcing this service cause the development of competition which may destroy the operation?

      After the issues of Company profitablity are discussed then get down to the other issues.

      [1] Are you Receiving assistance to be in business from State or Local Governments such as Industrial Development Bonds etc?

      [2] Do you meet the US EEOC requirements in the employement of all of the Outsourced employees? (Age Sex etc discrimination) Most Outsourcing actually is a masquerade for some form of racism or sexism.

      [3] Do you deal with the US Government directly or as a subcontractor? If so how do you expect the government to be able to pay your contract if everyone avoids paying US Taxes by "Outsourcing"?

      [4] Do you expect the United States Government to protect your operations using if need be Military Forces to make sure your trade is safe? If so how do you expect to have it paid for when you avoid paying the taxes which support it by "Outsourcing?"

      [5] Can you point to any nation which has benefitted by lowering wages and reducing its standard of living?

      [6] Do you like trading in the lucrative market in the USA? If so how do you think that it will remain lucrative with you and others "Outsourcing."

      [7] Are you as an American Incorporated Company benefiting by US Laws, Currency and infrastructure? If so how do you expect this to be maintained if you continue "Outsourcing."

      Then you can come down to the issues such as the effects on Citizens generally. These include:

      [1] Do you believe that United States Citizens have any rights in their own land that arise from Citizenship? If so what are they? If so how do your actions affect these rights?

      [2] What value do you believe should be placed on loyalty to your fellow countrymen?

      [3] How important is the USA to world safety and prosperity with regards to the cost of lives and treasure from US Taxpayers taken to pay for these actions and conditions?

      The whole set of issues here address the matter indirectly but they completely attack the reasoning behind the "Outsourcing" game.

      --
      Never Politically Correct ~ I prefer the facts If you don't like what I say, get a life, or comment yourself.
  2. Do overseas workers cause more problems than... by Xystance · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Very simply, do overseas workers cause more problems than they create? When it comes to programming, coordinating projects between two centers in different facilities in a single country is hard enough. Adding culture and language differences to the mix while not being able to have direct and on-site meetings to architect a complex program, is that a recipe for disaster? With overseas call centers, do you keep enough future customers due to deficiencies in customer support to make it financially viable to continue offshoring support? How do you cooordinate high-level management objectives with an office across the world?

  3. I will probably lose karma for this by realdpk · · Score: 5, Interesting

    (but who cares)

    My question is .. has the standard of living, for those working for American companies, increased at all? Or are the jobs just barely paying the bills like any other job might?

  4. Economy.. by DarkBlackFox · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Is outsourcing seen in the public eye as helping or destroying an economy? I mean, on the one hand, we're loosing jobs locally, but on the other hand it's creating thousands of jobs in 3rd world countries. I heard someone say before every one job here is worth three jobs offshore, for the same amount of money. I guess the question is, are companies benefiting by getting more bang for the buck out of employees helping the economy locally, if not the job market, while at the same time helping the economies of other countries by creating jobs? A penny saved is a penny earned, potentially spent locally.

  5. Effect on the economy? by neurojab · · Score: 5, Interesting

    What effect do you feel the outsourcing of professional jobs has on the economy? When manufacturing moves offshore, it's easy to say we'll all be employed with "knowledge jobs", but what happens when the knowledge jobs move offshore? Doesn't this equate to leaving our own highly skilled individuals unemployed/underemployed while we're pumping money into a foriegn economy via payroll? If we oursource our professional jobs, where will stateside consumers get the money to purchase the (now cheaper?) products? Is a "service only" economic model sustainable for the United States?

  6. Is the fiscal argument real? by delcielo · · Score: 5, Interesting

    To the CEOs of the outsourcing companies:

    Is the outsourcing really cheaper when the total costs are figured, or is this move a way to show shareholders that you're doing some cutting in the down economy?

    --
    Hot Damn! It's the Soggy Bottom Boys!
  7. Two Questions - one from each "side"? by prestidigital · · Score: 5, Interesting
    1. What are the hidden costs associated with offshore outsourcing? We hear a lot about drastically lower labor costs. But there are also costs associated with cultural and geographic distance, lack of interpersonal interaction, and trust issues, and more. These should be balanced against labor cost savings. So what are these costs and how much impact do they have?
    2. Is it really "offshore outsourcing" when the company that gets the job is a global company with offices and personnel located in the U.S.? Even jobs that are awarded to U.S. companies often involve the use of offsite workers located in or shipped in from other states. How much difference does it really make to an in-state worker who loses his job to an out-of-state worker compared to an out-of-country worker?
  8. And what about NEXT quarter? by BadDoggie · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Most outsourcing is done through intermediaries and the outsourced workers themselevs are classified as "contractors". These people realise the disposable nature of their positions and are themselves worried about their jobs disappearing to even cheaper countries such as the Philippines. There is no job security and no loyalty to the company. There is no incentive to work harder or find ways to help the company. There is only the desire to get as much out of the employer as possible, in the shortest time possible, and to find a new employer while still being paid by the old one.

    Considering this, can the short-term financial gains really offset the long-term benefits a loyal and motivated workforce provide?

  9. Re:Practice of outsourcing (not a question) by DAldredge · · Score: 4, Interesting

    A large portion of the cars made at the Honda plants in the USA are made for the US Market. Also, it is/was due to Reagans tarrifs that they located here in the first place.

    There is a difference between having a factory in an other country to serve that country and exporting most/all of that factories output to the USA.

    Hell, it can't continue much longer due to how our income tax system is setup. If you make less than a certin amount you pay NO income tax, and most of the new 'service' jobs pay less than that amount.

  10. Real Reasons? by ChuckDivine · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I'm on record for saying that working 100, 80, even 60 hours per week regularly is dysfunctional and counterproductive. There are other management fads that are likewise dysfunctional and counterproductive.

    To what extent is outsourcing being driven by staff resistance to management demands? What kinds of demands are being resisted?

    This question can be put to both the pro and anti sides.

    --
    "Beer is proof God loves us and wants us to be happy." -- B. Franklin
  11. What is the government's obligation to citizens by pileated · · Score: 5, Interesting

    There are a number of perspectives anyone can take on all of this, some purely economic, more purely political and all sorts of odd mixtures.

    The one I'm most interested in is this: what obligation does the government have to its citizens? Should it do whatever it can to facilitate profits for businesses? Should it do whatever it can to maintain/attain a high standard of living for all its citizens. Most communities form out of self-interest. They gain more by being together than apart, and often hard compromises are necessary where individuals must give up something for the common good that they've agreed to support. My feeling is that citizens, government and business have all lost any sense of this commonality of interest. So the first question I would ask is: who gains by offshoring and is that gain for the common good or for a specialized good. My feeling is that it's really for a specialized good, large corporations, but I may be wrong. But I do think this is the most important question to ask.

  12. How can a nation exist with only management? by gr8_phk · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I've heard MBA students spouting something about how all the "work" will be outsourced and people in the US will just "manage" everything. I fail to see how this is a viable model for a country. The foreigners will learn management too, and then those US managers that don't know anything about day to day operations in Singapore will be next to go. How can anyone claim a nation of upper managers is viable with a straight face?

  13. Real Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    They should comment on the so called "cost of living advantage:"

    Q1: If the severe oppression underlying working conditions for the vast majority of Indians was removed, would outsourcing of "high-end" jobs to India cease to be profitable?

    Q2: How does the current practice of outsourcing of "high-end" jobs to India help Indians in the ongoing struggle to remove the severe oppression there?

    Examples of oppression and their supporting infrastructure:

    1) Forced and *uncompensated* displacement of people from rural areas into the cities because of emminent domain siezure by authorities. (Official Indian government figures put the number of people affected by this at around 40Million since 1947. Activists estimate the number is much much higher.)

    2) Ubiquitious child labor in the houshold cleaning, and other related service sectors. No real enforcement against it.

    3) Child slavery and bonded labor (think "indentured servitude" from your history classes, but much worse.) affecting millions in rural areas. Sporadic enforcement against it.

    4) Open physical and verbal brutality of authorities (police, guards, and even employers) towards the poor to keep them obedient and compliant. Personal Note: once on a trip to India, I saw a policeman beat a little beggar kid about 3 hours after my plane touched down. I see examples of stuff like this on every trip to India. I have even heard many well-to-do folks talk openly about how "this is all those kind of people can understand."

    5) Right to education for everyone exists on paper only. Many areas have no functioning public school or that school has been "captured" by a subsection of the community with others excluded by overt and implicit discrimination.

    6) No democracy within political parties. The voter has no say as to whom will run for a seat on behalf of any given party. (e.g. No caucuses or primaries of any kind.) Rules *preventing* elected members of parliament from voting their conscience on issues affecting their locality.

    7) No freedom of information act or sunshine laws. (Even Ashcroft has to obey at least some FOI requests.) Example of a resulting state secret: How much money was spent on the goverment support of parochial (Christian and Muslim) schools as compared to the money spent on public schools open to all?

    8) No right to a speedy trial by a jury of peers. Say what you will about the OJ case, etc., participation in jury trials is a powerful way in which the public gets some control over their own destiny by being a part of the justice system. It is a lot harder to corrupt 12 randomly chosen jurors with other jobs than it is to get at one judge who you can count on for repeat business.