Off-Shoring/Outsourcing: Of Course, America Benefits

onstant carping of policy makers and others aboutcost countries resulted in lower costs for consumers,
the detrimental effect off-shoring / outsourcing willsimilarly off-shoring / outsourcing greatly benefits the
have on the national economy, seems they are hellAmerican consumers by providing many more and
bent on misleading the public. Little understandingcheaper services.
about the main principles behind off-shoring /The fear that off-shoring / outsourcing is going to
outsourcing, they continue to harp on about thedestroy American jobs is conceptually wrong, for
trend that will help eradicate poverty and raise livingevery job that is lost a new one is created to
standards globally. While, it is true, a number of pinkreplace it. By spending dollars on off-shored /
slips have been handed out as low-end jobs began tooutsourced services, the same dollars are either
be outsourced; the trend has also helped createreinvested or used to purchase American goods and
more new jobs and helped in lower the prices ofservices. The American public does not often see
many services for consumers.new jobs created by the same dollars spent on
The efforts of various people including a couple ofoff-shoring / outsourcing services, but they do return
Californian Senators in a bid to scupper theto US export industries as service providers purchase
off-shoring / outsourcing trend will not onlyequipment and other goods for their business.
discourage outsourcing, but will end up in damagingOff-shoring / outsourcing as a result of free trade
the economy. According to the unanimous consensusdoes not alter job numbers in a country. Rather, it
of high profile economists, and in the words of G.changes the job mix to reflect areas where we have
Mankiw, Chair for Council of Economic Advisors, freea greater competitive advantage over other
trade, in other words off-shoring / outsourcing is:countries. Off-shoring / outsourcing services in most
“just a new way of doing internationalcases leads to job specialisation as employees having
trade” and “a plus for the economy inlost low-end jobs upgrade and specialise, in turn helps
the long run.”raising their living standard. Often, unemployed
If you look at it, there is very little differenceworkers move on to work in other industries or
between international trade of services andre-train for better paying jobs.
international trade in manufacturing. Both countriesA positive trend, off-shoring / outsourcing, it helps in
involved in off-shoring / outsourcing gain from thethe following ways:
resultant free trade. Before the advent of high tech1. Off-shoring / outsourcing of service jobs creates
and advanced telecommunications, it was necessarymore jobs in the US export industry when service
for service jobs to remain at home in order to beproviders return the favour by buying American
close to customers, but since, internationalgoods and services.
competition has allowed call centres and information2. Off-shoring / outsourcing results in cost reduction
processing firms to service customers from acrossfor domestic firms.
the globe due to the latest in cutting edge3. Off-shoring / outsourcing means consumers get
information technology and telecommunications.top quality and a wider array of services at lower
In the same way that the cost of transporting goodsprices.
was lowered, and a wide array of agriculturalIn the long term, off-shoring / outsourcing will benefit
products and manufactured goods brought to millionsall Americans, and the IT industry will be the biggest
of consumers with the introduction of the 19thbeneficiary of all. In the best interests of American
century steam engine, 20th century informationeconomy, US businesses should continue to off-shore
technology promises to perform the same miracle for/ outsource to retain a competitive edge in consumer
the service industry. Shifting manufacturing to lowmarkets.