BPO workers to earn P247B in 2012

MANILA, Philippines – Workers in the country’s bustling business process outsourcing (BPO) sector are expected to earn P247 billion in total this year, a lawmaker said Wednesday.

House Deputy Majority Leader Roman Romulo, in a press statement, said BPO firms on average spend around 40 to 45 percent of their revenues to pay their staff.

“This is understandable since the industry is basically adding high-value labor services,” the Pasig lawmaker said.

Romulo said BPO compnaies will pay approximately $5.85 billion in salaries this year, on projected industry revenues of up to $13 billion.

“No matter how we look at it, P247 billion represents a huge amount of money being coursed through the economy every year, and helping to drive consumption spending,” he added.

The consumption spending is creating demand for goods and services, thus perking up domestic industries, he explained.

“To put the P247 billion into perspective, it is equal to around 14 percent of the national government’s P1.816-trillion spending program this year, and larger than the budgets of the top five departments,” Romulo said.

A survey by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas showed that BPO employees on average receive P383,863 in annual compensation.

Romulo said the BPO industry is projected to rake in up to $27 billion in annual revenues and directly employ some 1.3 million Filipino workers by 2016.

It posted $11 billion in revenues on a labor force of 638,000 in 2011.

This year, the sector hopes to create 126,000 new jobs and generate $2 billion in extra earnings, according to the Business Processing Association of the Philippines.

The BPO industry covers contact center services; back offices; medical, legal and other data transcription; animation; software development; engineering design; and digital content. –ABS-CBNnews.com