Anti-outsourcing bill in US Congress not expected to pass, says TUCP

Anticipating American firms that are benefiting from outsourcing to oppose the proposed US Call Center Work and Consumer Protection Act pending in the US Congress, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines said the business process outsourcing industry will continue to create jobs for Filipinos.

“We welcome Wells Fargo’s launch of an in-house business support center in Manila, following the footsteps of JP Morgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup, Inc.,” TUCP president and former Senator Ernesto Herrera said in a statement issued Saturday.

The same statement mentioned that a labor federation of contact center employees named VOICE is a new member of the TUCP.

“We are counting on Wells Fargo’s new center to help provide gainful employment to our college-education, fluent English-speaking professionals, many of whom remain idle,” Herrera also said.

The TUCP noted that Wells Fargo is the second largest US bank in terms of deposits, home mortgage servicing and debit cards.

In an online wanted notice posted last December, Wells Fargo Philippines Solutions said it needed inbound sales specialists whose responsibilities will include “handling incoming sales and service calls from customers and places outbound calls to customers in order to meet sales goals…”

Qualifications for the vacancies included completion of “at least second year of college…at least 2 years of working experience in BPO preferably in banking/ financial services, and… at least 6 months of sales or customer service experience.”

The TUCP noted that the BPO industry employs some 630,000 Filipinos and earned $11 billion in revenues in 2011, and “could create around 126,000 new jobs this year.” — ELR, GMA News