In The News

An Outsourcing Giant Fights Back

Saritha Rai March 21, 2004
Azim Premji, the founder of one of India’s leading technology giant Wipro, has found himself on the defensive of late. Premji's business is one of the leading outsourcing concerns in the world, with a net worth of $8 billion and clients from the top layer of their industries. As the domestic debates in America over job loss and outsourcing grow, . Premji has come to symbolize exactly...

Rhetoric, Not Substance, to Change in Spain

Andres Oppenheimer March 18, 2004
The election upset in Spain last Sunday is being seen by some observers as a repudiation of outgoing Prime Minister José María Aznar's close ties with the US and support for the Iraq War. In Latin America, national leaders from Argentina to Venezuela are celebrating the arrival of a stronger ally in the new socialist party government of Spain. Despite the potential for change, however,...

Lingering Job Insecurity of Silicon Valley

Steve Lohr March 9, 2004
Despite the recent upsurge in business activity, skilled technology workers remain in weak demand in the US. Experienced and well-educated computer scientists and software engineers - many of whom boast PhDs - are falling victim to broad market forces that, until recently, have affected primarily blue-collar workers. "You have multiple effects going on: automation, outsourcing and business...

Bush Administration Should Stop Turning Refugees Away

Cheryl Little March 9, 2004
With Haiti's political system in turmoil after President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's departure, the US is experiencing a rise in Haitian refugees attempting to leave their home. Despite the legitimate fears of violence many of these people face, say two immigrant advocates, the US has turned a cold shoulder – and turned Haitians back from US shores. For over two years now, the Bush...

Protectionism Hurts US Schools

Amity Shlaes March 7, 2004
In America's 'panic' over outsourcing, says this opinion piece in the Financial Times, education is a key factor that has received little attention. For too long, says Amity Shlaes, the US public education system has been coddled and protected from competition. American students' poor showing on international educational assessments is the result of decades of decline. The...

Outsourcing Is Becoming a Harder Sell in the U.S.

Eduardo Porter March 6, 2004
While white-collar American workers fret over the possibility that their jobs will be outsourced and politicians call for more restrictions on offshoring, even some US business owners fear that outsourcing may ultimately be to their detriment. According to a recent study, 80 percent of senior executives believe that outsourcing is good for the global economy. Yet only 58 percent of American...

Outsourcing Debate - Part III

David Dapice March 1, 2004
Despite the political debates over outsourcing that are emerging in this US presidential election year, the economic story is quite simple. In the final installment of a three-part series on outsourcing, economist David Dapice says that outsourcing allows hundreds of thousands of people in developing countries like Vietnam the chance to earn wages, pull themselves out of poverty, and - in turn...