SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
from the training-how-to-be-outsourced dept.
Michael Hiltzik, a columnist with the Los Angeles Times, has some harsh words about UCSF's plan to outsource 20% of its IT staffing to the Indian outsourcing firm HCL Technologies:
Using a visa loophole to fire well-paid U.S. information technology workers and replace them with low-paid immigrants from India is despicable enough when it's done by profit-making companies such as Southern California Edison and Walt Disney Co.
But the latest employer to try this stunt sets a new mark in what might be termed "job laundering." It's the University of California. Experts in the abuse of so-called H-1B visas say UC is the first public university to send the jobs of American IT staff offshore. That's not a distinction UC should wear proudly.
UC San Francisco, the system's biggest medical center, announced in July that it would lay off 49 career IT staffers and eliminate 48 other IT jobs that were vacant or filled by contract employees. The workers are to be gone as of Feb. 28. In the meantime they've been ordered to train their own replacements, who are employees of the Indian outsourcing firm HCL Technologies.
[...] "The argument for Disney or Edison is that its executives are driven to maximize profits," says Ron Hira of Howard University, a expert in H-1B visas. "But UC is a public institution, not driven by profit. It's qualitatively different from other employers."
By sending IT jobs abroad, UC is undermining its own mission, which includes preparing California students to serve the high-tech industry.
"UC is training software engineers at the same time they're outsourcing their own software engineers," says Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose), whose district includes much of Silicon Valley. "What message are they sending their own students?"
[...] Of course, if UCSF's initiative blows up in its face, the victims will be its patients, doctors and researchers. In running a university hospital, Laret told me, "you have to make some hard choices." That's indisputable, but the unanswered question is whether UCSF's choice will cost more than it saves.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday January 10 2017, @05:36PM
They protect their turf with trade unions and US-centric certification rules, we don't.
That's also why IT has been a leading creator of economic growth in the US while those two are causes of higher costs of doing stuff in the US. IT can create its own jobs. They don't need to screw over the rest of society in order to get ahead.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 10 2017, @07:09PM
While that may be true, it won't necessarily benefit IT workers. Cheaper doctors would benefit many OTHERS also, just NOT doctors. Why should IT workers be the sacrificial economic lambs? Spread the pain/benefits.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday January 12 2017, @03:33AM
Why should IT workers be the sacrificial economic lambs?
I was thinking more that the protected status of those other groups should be revoked. But this is the Atlas Shrugged scenario in a nutshell. I'd much rather wait till things get worse before doing that.