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Yet another outsourcing thread
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/7/35190.html
IT giants HP, IBM and Dell have been criticised for running third world factories blighted by "dire working conditions".
...
"Cafod saw interview lists used by recruitment agencies supplying workers for an IBM production line. Reasons for rejection included: 'Homosexual, more than two tattoos, father is a lawyer, has brought labour claims, worked for a union, pregnancy, does not agree with IBM policies.'"
globalisation is good for who?
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
Is that all one person?
Philo
Philo
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
"does not agree with IBM policies"
Charge ungodly amounts for solutions that are no better than competitors?
Walter Rumsby
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
> does not agree with IBM policies
Has an IQ above 100 and refuses to simply sit in cubicle and do what he's told by the non-programmer account manager.
Team player
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
"father is a lawyer"
I'm against stereotyping, but you've got to draw the line somewhere, and that one sounds perfectly reasonable.
Mister Fancypants
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
Took some diggng, but here's the (very long) original article:
http://www.cafod.org.uk/policy_and_analysis/policy_papers/clean_up_your_computer_report
Tony Chang
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
From the article, here's the job interview process at an outsourced IBM production facility:
> "I had to fill in a questionnaire; it had some really personal questions in it. They asked, "How many boyfriends have you had? When did you last have sex? How many times? Do you have any sexually transmitted diseases?’ I stopped filling in the answers."
And here's the job interview process to got o work for Hewlett Packard:
>"They did a psychometric test on me and then asked normal questions, without all the personal stuff I had at IBM. But then came the medical exam. I was in a room with two nurses. Well they were dressed like nurses anyway. They were both very rude and really bullied me around, shouting at me to do this, do that.
>"They asked me all those questions about drinking, smoking, illnesses in the family. Then one said, 'Strip off, I need to check you for tattoos.' My word was not good enough. I had to take off all my clothes, including my underwear. They even touched me while I was naked, checking my breasts. I don’t know what they were really looking for.
>"After that, they asked me if I was pregnant. I said no, but that wasn’t enough. They gave me a test paper and ordered me into the bathroom telling me to do the pregnancy test. They said, "If you have your period then you have to show us your sanitary towel to prove that you are bleeding."
>It was a totally humiliating experience. It was the worst thing I have ever had to go through. It was completely degrading. But I didn’t know how to complain I mean, they were doing the same thing to everyone."
So anyway, that's what you're paying for when you spend money with IBM and HP.
Tony Chang
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
cafod:
http://www.cafod.org.uk/get_involved/campaigning/trade_justice_campaign/clean_up_your_computer
Hermaphrodite
Thursday, January 29, 2004
In many countries outside the US (in particular third world countries), blatant discrimination is legally and socially permitted -- age, gender, hair/skin color, marital status, marital status of your parents, height, weight, city of birth -- anything is fair game.
Of course, this often leads to the best people for the job being rejected, which ultimately reduces productivity and perpetuates the nation's third world status.
NoName
Thursday, January 29, 2004
The issue with not hiring pregnant women and firing gals who get knocked up is a very simple one. The last thing we need is the publicity from all our pregnant workers giving birth to severely malformed children, which is exactly what will happen if they do get pregnant and continue working here. We don't care about the women, but we do care about the publicity. Women working here are REQUIRED to be on the pill while they are here - the company nurse makes them take their pill each morning while she watches to make sure they swallow. We also provide free sterilization services for third world women and will do norplant, which is actually prefered by management to the pill since its less expensive to administer.
here's the facts - you're paying $499 for a computer that is more powerful than a Cray supercomputer was only a few years back. The computer has lots of very complicated and sophsticated parts and components, all of which are made with high tech production lines that use TONNES of toxic, carcinogenic, and birth defect causing chemicals. Manufacturing in the US or any other western countries that have laws and rules and checks on the health of the workers is NOT a possibility, it's totally and completely not economically viable given the state of the commodity IT market. As it is' we don't make a lot of profit, so paying for respirators and special ventilation systems and all the other stuff needed to stop birth defects is totally not possible. The only thing that is feasible is to make sure prognant women, or people who have the abality to sue or cause problems don't end up working here. Simple economic facts. Get used to them because it's all part of the culture of westerners enjoying expliting third world workers so they can enjoy the benefits of cheap goods. We aim to please this market and we deliver what the custom wants - cheap stuff, damn the real cost.
Offshore Production Facility Manager
Thursday, January 29, 2004
The report is about contractors, not IBM o HP owned factories.
Stephen Jones
Saturday, January 31, 2004
Are you sure Stephen? Reread the very first sentence in this thread...
Observer
Saturday, January 31, 2004
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