Burnley: The New Mumbai

[MadImmortalMan]

Here's a cool story. Indian call centre gets outsourced back to England.



http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/07/05/burnley_the_new_mumbai

Burnley: The new Mumbai?
Posted By Edmund Downie Tuesday, July 5, 2011 - 1:52 P



Is the end nigh for Indian tech support? A British telecommunications company is moving one of its call centers from Mumbai to Burnley, 21 miles north of Manchester, to cut costs. New Call Telecom chief executive Nigel Eastwood explains the decision:

    Salaries in India aren't that cheap any more. Add to that the costs of us flying out there, hotels and software, and the costs are at an absolute parity.

    In the UK we will pay workers the minimum wage. Given the current economic environment, we will get good "sticky" employees who will also receive bonuses linked to performance.

With rents as low as £4 per square foot, prices for commercial real estate in Burnley are reportedly on par with those in Mumbai. Residential prices are similarly affordable; data from the property website Mouseprice indicates that four of the five most affordable streets in England and Wales are located in Burnley, a former mill town struggling with high unemployment. Meanwhile, salaries in the IT outsourcing industry in India are set to rise 11.9 percent in the upcoming year, and some business process outsourcing leaders in India have already admitted that, with unemployment high throughout the West, India's competitive advantage in call centers is shrinking.

Eastwood also notes that using British staff should make call handling more efficient as well, because British customers will find compatriots easier to understand. Although the rest of the world may beg to differ on that one.

Yay minimum wage jobs!

[Slargos]

Better than no jobs at all.

[HVC]

i wonder if they'll hire any 16-19 year olds.

[Slargos]

i wonder if they'll hire any 16-19 year olds.

For this kind of job they're the best candidates.

They don't know or understand enough to make demands on their employer. They can be lied to and tricked out of what few rights they do have. They are malleable and if you catch them early enough and they are sufficiently without prospects, you can make lifers out of them or work them until they burn to a cinder as you please.

Hell, if I ever started a callcenter business, I would exclusively hire from the category, and I would pit them against eachother for favour and promotion in the office.

I would rule them like a king, and probably father many illegitimate children in the process.

Good Lord, I would make a horrible callcenter entrepreneur.

Morally speaking.

Financially, I would make a killing. Possibly literally.

[HVC]

From what little i know women who work in call centers are too ugly for counter jobs. So while you could father several illegitimate children i really don't know why you'd want to

[Eddie Teach]

He should open a business with people working for tips.

[Richard Hakluyt]

Minimum wage is not as bad as one might think............if you can earn it in Burnley rather than London or another expensive place.

The minimum wage is £5.93 per hour (ie $9.53) so, for a 40-hour week, thats about £12k or just short of $20k.

[Slargos]

From what little i know women who work in call centers are too ugly for counter jobs. So while you could father several illegitimate children i really don't know why you'd want to

Yes, but you have experience from mud countries.

The callcenters I worked at were staffed by some pretty nice hotties.

No 10s, but plenty of the 6-8 range.

[Tamas]

Does it REALLY matter on what geographical location are you staffing your call centers with Indians/pakis?

[Admiral Yi]

Does it REALLY matter on what geographical location are you staffing your call centers with Indians/pakis?

Of course.  Pomipakis have different accents than Yankipakis, and so on.

[mongers]

Does it REALLY matter on what geographical location are you staffing your call centers with Indians/pakis?

Of course.  Pomipakis have different accents than Yankipakis, and so on.

Hmm, I'm not sure anyone I've met would be happy with that label.

Personally I prefer Brummie, Geordie  or Scouse accents when dealing with call centres, ethnicity doesn't come into it.

[Richard Hakluyt]

I was reading the comments below a newspaper article about Lancashire issues when I came across a gem from a Burnley resident. He said that Burnley was "...sick to death of being dictated to by metropolitan sophisticates from Preston........".

The mind boggles 

[Josquius]

Surprising article, I thought this was a long established trend?
Albeit for reasons of service quality and long term profits rather than short term savings.

Better than no jobs at all.

Totally.
Especially in a town like Burnley.

or this kind of job they're the best candidates.

They don't know or understand enough to make demands on their employer. They can be lied to and tricked out of what few rights they do have. They are malleable and if you catch them early enough and they are sufficiently without prospects, you can make lifers out of them or work them until they burn to a cinder as you please.

For tech support call centres...maybe not.
But for call centres trying to sell stuff definitely, they do make a habit of hiring kids at those even,.

[Valmy]

Same thing is happening in the US.  Our shitty jobs are returning!  Praise Adam Smith!

[Valmy]

With rents as low as £4 per square foot

Wait that is a low rent?  Is that quarterly or something?