Philippines BPO Industry Confident U.S. Anti-Outsourcing Bill Won't Be Taken Up Again

Given how much support the Obama administration had put in his first term behind tough anti foreign call center outsourcing legislation, you’d imagine that offshore BPO players might be nervous about the recent election outcome.

Not so much, according to at least one source, a Philippines business newspaper. Business process outsourcing (BPO) firms in the nation are not worried about the possible resurfacing in Congress of a bill called the “Bring Jobs Home” that would, among other things, penalize U.S. firms for sending their call center business abroad, the Philippines’ Business Mirror is reporting today.

Jojo Uligan, executive director of the Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP), said the BPO industry is confident that Congress will again junk the measure as the American lawmakers are seen to give more weight to benefits that U.S. firms are getting in outsourcing some of their tasks, particularly in the Philippines.

“BPOs in the Philippines are very beneficial to American companies. We deliver quality service at lower cost. We are still confident that the bill would not pass like the last time,” Uligan told the BusinessMirror.

The bill’s sponsors in Congress, however, say they will give it another shot.

“President Obama’s job is the same as President Aquino’s job, to provide jobs to Americans, just as President Aquino’s job is to provide jobs for Filipinos,” said U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines, Harry K. Thomas Jr.

Uligan said he thinks it’s more likely that a bill targeting manufacturing jobs only will be brought to a vote, perhaps underestimating how deeply popular foreign call centers are with Americans, and how much support the call center bill has among voters.