Dispelling outsourcing myths
It has become fashionable in Washington to complain that companies overseas, particularly in India, are stealing American jobs. “Outsourcing” has become a dirty word and has been labeled as villainous by candidates for Congress this election. But the truth is that India-based companies are bringing jobs to the United States in large numbers. The top six Indian information technology companies alone have created more than 35,000 jobs in the United States, according to a recent study by the India Brand Equity Foundation. President Obama is heading to India for his first state visit this week. While personally very popular there, Obama will face a lot of hard questions about American policy, especially with regard to outsourcing. Obama has signed into law a measure that would double the fees for visas that allow skilled foreigners, many from India, to work in the United States. Indians want an open door in both directions and President Obama has said he does, too. He will be implored to turn his words into action. The facts about Indian companies operating in the United States will help him follow through. Tata Consultancy Services of Mumbai is expanding in the United States. Its 220-acre campus outside Cincinnati is the firm’s largest facility in North America. It eventually will employ 1,000 professionals. Wipro Technology, a major engineering and software company, has also become one of the largest job creators in Atlanta. It recently hired 500 people for good, high-paying work. The Bangalore-based firm will replicate that record in two other U.S. cities soon. In addition, in just the last few years, these and other Indian companies have invested $5.5 billion in new plant and equipment in the United States — construction that required the hiring of 16,000 Americans. In the last three years, recruiters from India-based firms visited more than 450 colleges in the United States and offered jobs to more than 1,100 students. Indian IT corporations have also become major donors to American universities. Infosys has given hundreds of thousands of dollars to Purdue, Rutgers and the University of Southern California. Tata has become a major benefactor of educational activities in the Appalachian range of Ohio. Wipro has been reaching into high schools and the U.S. military to find its newest employees. In addition, the Indian economy is growing annually at 8.5 percent to 9.5 percent. The country’s expanding middle class is creating huge demand for infrastructure spending and consumer products, which is a large opportunity for U.S. companies. India and India-based companies are an important engine of economic growth and job development in the United States. President Obama should take pride in that fact — just as Indians do — and find a way to tone down the anti-outsourcing rhetoric.
| [Source] Software Outsourcing Blog Section: http://www.unisoftchina.com |
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