Much has been said about the advantages associated with call centers. But what are its negative externalities? Yesterday, a young fellow working in a big call center (in Manila) asked about the negative side of hosting call centers. I asked why did he asked and the reply was that he has observed a number of people who stopped going to school in favor of jobs in contact centers. He reasoned that this happened because contact centers do not require applicants to have a college degree.
My reply was not along the lines of his reasoning. I told him that the call centers’ ”No college degree required policy” provides the country with more benefits than disadvantages. The policy is a tremendous help to the throngs of people who failed to finish the college, who before the arrival of the Call Centers, were among the most disadvantaged in the country.
The real danger actually lurks within those who started working in Contact Centers immediately after college and that includes him. Dumbfounded, he asked why and I said, "look at it this way. Call Centers provide meaningful employment to young graduates but not much beyond it". For instance, a young graduate of architecture initially earns more if he works in a call center than as an apprentice in most architectural firms. And since most Filipino graduates belong to the lower class, the temptation to choose the higher paying job is a lot greater. In the beginning, the choice may seem wise but eventually, the individual will realize that the call center salary will not be enough. Young graduates do not require a lot of money to be able to finance their daily needs. But once they get married or older, the salary is nowhere close to being enough. They will all need to have their own houses, vehicles and other properties and call center salaries will be lacking. Of course, those who eventually rise to become managers earn well by the country’s standards but looking at the number high positions, one will realize that those posts are way below the number of starting (call center agent) posts. Only a handful meks it to the top. It means that a lot of people will become under employed in terms of income levels.
For the meantime, his classmates who started as apprentices in architectural firms had already accumulated enough experiences and skills and must have risen to become senior employees. They may even have their own architectural businesses. His classmates now command higher prices for their jobs and may even be doing their own architectural outsourcing services by designing houses for people overseas.
Can the call center employee switch jobs and go back to architecture? Of course, it is possible. However, he will have to start anew and the pay may not be enough to sustain his daily needs which should have increased since he has become older. And if that is the case, he may not leave his call center job anymore and get stuck in it. The main problem, at this point is a call center career is a dead end job.
My reply was not along the lines of his reasoning. I told him that the call centers’ ”No college degree required policy” provides the country with more benefits than disadvantages. The policy is a tremendous help to the throngs of people who failed to finish the college, who before the arrival of the Call Centers, were among the most disadvantaged in the country.
The real danger actually lurks within those who started working in Contact Centers immediately after college and that includes him. Dumbfounded, he asked why and I said, "look at it this way. Call Centers provide meaningful employment to young graduates but not much beyond it". For instance, a young graduate of architecture initially earns more if he works in a call center than as an apprentice in most architectural firms. And since most Filipino graduates belong to the lower class, the temptation to choose the higher paying job is a lot greater. In the beginning, the choice may seem wise but eventually, the individual will realize that the call center salary will not be enough. Young graduates do not require a lot of money to be able to finance their daily needs. But once they get married or older, the salary is nowhere close to being enough. They will all need to have their own houses, vehicles and other properties and call center salaries will be lacking. Of course, those who eventually rise to become managers earn well by the country’s standards but looking at the number high positions, one will realize that those posts are way below the number of starting (call center agent) posts. Only a handful meks it to the top. It means that a lot of people will become under employed in terms of income levels.
For the meantime, his classmates who started as apprentices in architectural firms had already accumulated enough experiences and skills and must have risen to become senior employees. They may even have their own architectural businesses. His classmates now command higher prices for their jobs and may even be doing their own architectural outsourcing services by designing houses for people overseas.
Can the call center employee switch jobs and go back to architecture? Of course, it is possible. However, he will have to start anew and the pay may not be enough to sustain his daily needs which should have increased since he has become older. And if that is the case, he may not leave his call center job anymore and get stuck in it. The main problem, at this point is a call center career is a dead end job.
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