Working for Job Security and Quality Customer Service in The U.S. Contact

Center Industry

Why We Need the Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act

2 Sources: U.S. National Report: Global Call Center Survey, www.globalcallcenter.org; BLS, Occupational Employment Statistics, May 2009, www.bls.gov/oes/oes_dl.htm

Customer contact is a major industry

57,000 contact centers in U.S. 4,000 large centers (150 or more agent positions) Large centers employ about one-half of agents 86% of centers are “in-house” (not subcontracted)

4.7 million U.S. contact center workers 3.7% of the total U.S. workforce

Customer service rep is largest occupational title in centers 2.2 million CSR jobs in 2010 (45% of call center jobs) 7th largest occupational title in the U.S.

3rd largest projected growth in the number of jobs with an expected increase of 400,000 jobs (18%) from 2008 to 2018

3

Competition drives goals and strategies

Business Goals: Retain customers

Reduce costs

Increase revenue

Strategies to Achieve Goals: One Stop Shop – for sales,

service and billing

Web Self-Serve – for sales, tech support

Interactive Voice Response

Outsourcing/Offshoring

4 Source: CFI Group: Contact Center Satisfaction Index 2010

In-House, outsourced, and offshore centers

In-house centers: Still the overwhelming majority of the industry Call center industry revenues: $250 billion/year

$200 billion in-house; $50 billion outsourced

80% of US centers are in-house

Leading outsource and off-shore companiesConvergys Corp. Teleperformance

Sitel Worldwide TeleTech Holdings, Inc.

Sykes Enterprises, Inc. APAC Customer Services, Inc

Call centers rebuild third world economies

Top two offshoring destinations are Philippines, India 350,000 – 400,000 call center workers in Philippines

Growing at 50,000 jobs per year; estimated 30-35% annual growth rate

Bills itself as 5th largest English speaking country and “inexpensive” labor

330,000 call center workers in India Estimated 10-15% annual growth rate Indian call centers beginning to sub-outsource to yet other

countries to take advantage of lower labor costs Markets “low cost of manpower” and government support of

the industry

Foreign centers lack security measures common in the U.S.

Expensive and difficult to run background checks on foreign call center workers

Bank account and sensitive data more susceptible to theft and fraud

Overseas call centers not subject to data breach notification laws

Indian government carved out call center companies from compliance with data privacy laws

7 Source: CFI Group: Contact Center Satisfaction Index, 2010.

Customer satisfaction in US vs. offshore centers

Customer satisfaction in US centers is 25% higher than off-shore centers

8

What We’re Doing to Secure Jobs and Quality Service in the Call Center Industry Bargaining

Job security, improved working conditions, wage and benefits

Customer Service Committee sharing strategies and solutions

Organizing Telecom: T-Mobile Airlines: Piedmont, American & American Eagle Outsourcers: ACS/Xerox

What We’re Doing to Secure Jobs and Quality Service in the Call Center Industry

Legislative Action: The United States Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act (HR 3596)

Introduced by Representative Tim Bishop Creates “bad actor” list of U.S companies that

send jobs overseas Requires disclosure of call center location to

U.S. consumers Provides right to have call transferred to U.S.-

based agent.