Overseas Call Centers Target Of Anti-Outsourcing Bill

[salbahis]

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good thing i stayed away from CC and put my skills to WASTE.... wake up call guys!!!, brush of those dusty skills and do what you are really intended to.... working at CC sometimes is just a waste of good skills...

[lodyl]

good thing i stayed away from CC and put my skills to WASTE.... wake up call guys!!!, brush of those dusty skills and do what you are really intended to.... working at CC sometimes is just a waste of good skills...

Pero if ilahang mindset bai kay "investor", I think it's a good plan to work in CCs kay mas dagko sad jud baya sila ug kita kompara natong mga ordinaryong nilalang lang...

[ian_1983]

H.R.3596 - United States Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act
To require a publicly available a list of all employers that relocate a call center overseas and to make such companies ineligible for Federal grants or guaranteed loans and to require disclosure of the physical location of business agents engaging in customer service communications.

HR 3596 IH

112th CONGRESS

1st Session

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

December 7, 2011
Mr. BISHOP of New York (for himself, Mr. MCKINLEY, Mr. MICHAUD, and Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Oversight and Government Reform, Armed Services, and Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
________________________________________
A BILL
To require a publicly available a list of all employers that relocate a call center overseas and to make such companies ineligible for Federal grants or guaranteed loans and to require disclosure of the physical location of business agents engaging in customer service communications.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘The United States Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act’.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act--
(1) the term ‘agency’ means a Federal or State executive agency and a military department;
(2) the term ‘business entity’ means any organization, corporation, trust, partnership, sole proprietorship, unincorporated association, or venture established to make a profit, in whole or in part, by purposefully availing itself of the privilege of conducting commerce in the United States;
(3) the term ‘call center’ means a facility or other operation whereby employees receive incoming telephone calls, emails, or other electronic communication for the purpose of providing customer assistance or other service;
(4) the term ‘consumer’ means any individual within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States who purchases, transacts, or contracts for the purchase or transaction of any goods, merchandise, or services, not for resale in the ordinary course of the individual’s trade or business, but for the individual’s use or that of a member of the individual’s household;
(5) the term ‘customer service communication’ means any telecommunication or wire communication between a consumer and a business entity in furtherance of commerce;
(6) the term ‘employer’ means any business enterprise that employs in a call center--
(A) 50 or more employees, excluding part-time employees;
(B) 50 or more employees who in the aggregate work at least 1,500 hours per week (exclusive of hours of overtime)
(7) the term ‘part-time employee’ means an employee who is employed for an average of fewer than 20 hours per week or who has been employed for fewer than 6 of the 12 months preceding the date on which notice is required;
( the terms ‘relocating’ and ‘relocation’ refer to the closure of a call center, or the cessation of operations of a call center, or 1 or more facilities or operating units within a call center comprising at least 30 percent of the call center’s, or operating unit’s, total volume when measured against the previous 12-month average call volume of operations or substantially similar operations to a location outside of the United States;
(9) the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of Labor;
(10) the term ‘telecommunication’ means the transmission, between or among points specified by the communicator, of information of the communicator’s choosing, without change in the form or content of the information as sent and received;
(11) the term ‘wire communication’ or ‘communication by wire’ means the transmission of writing, signs, signals, pictures, and sounds of all kinds by aid of wire, cable, or other like connection between the points of origin and reception of such transmission, including all instrumentalities, facilities, apparatus, and services (among other things, the receipt, forwarding, and delivery of communications) incidental to such transmission.
SEC. 3. LIST OF CALL CENTERS RELOCATING OVERSEAS AND INELIGIBILITY FOR GRANTS OR GUARANTEED LOANS.
(a) List-
(1) NOTICE REQUIREMENT-
(A) IN GENERAL- Not fewer than 120 days before relocating a call center to a location outside of the United States, an employer shall notify the Secretary of such relocation.
(B) PENALTY- A person who violates subparagraph (A) shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $10,000 for each day of violation.
(2) LIST- The Secretary shall maintain and make publicly available a list of all employers that relocate a call center, and such employers shall remain on the list for a period not to exceed 3 years after each instance of relocating a call center.
(b) Ineligibility for Grants or Guaranteed Loans-
(1) INELIGIBILITY- Except as provided in subsection (b) and notwithstanding any other provision of law, an employer that appears on the list described in section 3(b) shall be ineligible for any direct or indirect Federal grants or Federal guaranteed loans for 5 years after the date such employer was added to the list.
(2) EXCEPTIONS- The Secretary, in consultation with the appropriate agency providing a loan or grant, may waive the eligibility restriction provided under subsection (a) if the employer applying for such loan or grant demonstrates that a lack of such loan or grant would--
(A) threaten national security;
(B) result in substantial job loss in the United States; or
(C) harm the environment.
(c) Preference in Federal Contracting for Not Relocating a Call Center Overseas- The head of an agency, when awarding a civilian or defense-related contract, shall give preference to a United States employer that does not appear on the list described in section 3(b).
(d) Effective Date- This section shall take effect 1 year after its enactment.
SEC. 4. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION RELATED TO FEDERAL BENEFITS FOR WORKERS.
No provision of section 3 shall be construed to permit withholding or denial of payments, compensation, or benefits under any Federal law (including Federal unemployment compensation, disability payments, or worker retraining or readjustment funds) to workers employed by employers that relocate operations outside the United States.
SEC. 5. REQUIRED DISCLOSURE BY BUSINESS ENTITIES ENGAGED IN CUSTOMER SERVICE COMMUNICATIONS OF PHYSICAL LOCATION.
(a) In General- Except as provided in subsection (b), a business entity that either initiates or receives a customer service communication shall require that each of its employees or agents participating in the communication disclose their physical location at the beginning of each customer service communication so initiated or received.
(b) Exceptions-
(1) BUSINESS ENTITIES LOCATED IN THE UNITED STATES- The requirements of subsection (a) shall not apply to a customer service communication involving a business entity if all of the employees or agents of the business entity participating in such communication are physically located in the United States.
(2) COMMUNICATION INITIATED BY CONSUMER KNOWINGLY TO FOREIGN ENTITY OR ADDRESS- The requirements of subsection (a) shall not apply to an employee or agent of a business entity participating in a customer service communication with a consumer if--
(A) the customer service communication was initiated by the consumer;
(B) the employee or agent is physically located outside the United States; and
(C) the consumer knows or reasonably should know that the employee or agent is physically located outside the United States.
(3) EMERGENCY SERVICES- The requirements of subsection (a) shall not apply to a customer service communication relating to the provision of emergency services (as defined by the Federal Trade Commission).
(4) BUSINESS ENTITIES AND CUSTOMER SERVICE COMMUNICATIONS EXCLUDED BY FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION- The Federal Trade Commission may exclude certain classes or types of business entities or customer service communications from the requirements of subsection (a) if the Commission finds exceptionally compelling circumstances that justify such exclusion.
(c) Transfer to U.S.-Based Customer Service Center- A business entity that is subject to the requirements of subsection (a) shall, at the request of a customer, transfer the customer to a customer service agent who is physically located in the United States.
(d) Certification Requirement- Each year, each business entity that participates in a customer service communication shall certify to the Federal Trade Commission that it has complied or failed to comply with the requirements of subsection (a) and (c).
(e) Regulations- Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Trade Commission shall promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.
(f) Effective Date- The requirements of subsection (a) shall apply with respect to customer service communications occurring on or after the date that is 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 6. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) In General- Any failure to comply with the provisions of section 5 shall be treated as a violation of a regulation under section 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)) regarding unfair or deceptive acts or practices.
(b) Powers of Federal Trade Commission-
(1) IN GENERAL- The Federal Trade Commission shall prevent any person from violating section 5 and any regulation promulgated thereunder, in the same manner, by the same means, and with the same jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though all applicable terms and provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) were incorporated into and made a part of this Act.
(2) PENALTIES- Any person who violates regulations promulgated under section 5 shall be subject to the penalties and entitled to the privileges and immunities provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act in the same manner, by the same means, and with the same jurisdiction, power, and duties as though all applicable terms and provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act were incorporated into and made part of this Act.
(c) Authority Preserved- Nothing in this section or section 5 shall be construed to limit the authority of the Federal Trade Commission under any other provision of law.

[3nZ0y]

apparently thats reality.... unless naa kay experienced nga pwede nimo ika sagpa sa employer ug ika tapat sa mga degree holder... finishing college is always the best way to have a good career...but and only if you add diskarte to it...

But unsaon nimo pagka kuha og experience if TANAN ingon ana ang huna-huna? Is it not prejudicial? How I wish this mentality will be changed.

Finishing college is NOT ALWAYS the best way. Pila ba ka college graduate ang walay trabaho? Ang dili maka trabaho sa ilaha gi eskwelahan? Sakto ka, kinahanglan gihapon og diskarte.

[digitalsuperman]

But unsaon nimo pagka kuha og experience if TANAN ingon ana ang huna-huna? Is it not prejudicial? How I wish this mentality will be changed.

Finishing college is NOT ALWAYS the best way. Pila ba ka college graduate ang walay trabaho? Ang dili maka trabaho sa ilaha gi eskwelahan? Sakto ka, kinahanglan gihapon og diskarte.

im not sure ha.pero im sure mas daghan naka trabaho nga college graduate kaysa mga wala nakatiwas ug college. feeling lang nako ha.dili pud ko sure.wala man koy stats pud. OT nani.ahak. balik tas topic.

[salbahis]

Pero if ilahang mindset bai kay "investor", I think it's a good plan to work in CCs kay mas dagko sad jud baya sila ug kita kompara natong mga ordinaryong nilalang lang...

i know that #1 reason why daghan ganahan mag agent is always about money, mao bitaw daghan garaon ng agent (not all but most sa ako nasugatan mga hilas...), even if nausik lang ang gigasto sa ginikananan pa eskwela... kung mag cc r aman diay sila naypa wala nalang sila ni skwela ug dugay sa college naypa ni kuha nalang sila anang pang cc nga course.... kay usik ra jud...

[salbahis]

But unsaon nimo pagka kuha og experience if TANAN ingon ana ang huna-huna? Is it not prejudicial? How I wish this mentality will be changed.

Finishing college is NOT ALWAYS the best way. Pila ba ka college graduate ang walay trabaho? Ang dili maka trabaho sa ilaha gi eskwelahan? Sakto ka, kinahanglan gihapon og diskarte.

personal experienced ni nako it sucks to be a college drop out, ni drop out ko sa uc kay amo gikulata ako maestro nga dili ko pa graduaton... ug nagmahay ko nga dili nako ka eskwela ug balik ug wa naka human...

reality sucks.... most companies are still looking for papers... wether we like it or not... thats reality...

onething lang jud ang masulti nako "DISKARTE", ive started from the bottom and worked my way-up... thats how i get my experienced... DISKARTE

still if you have the chance to finish you college education... it is worth...

let's be realistic we cant change the fact nga mao nay nahitabo karon... musgot mog sa dili..

my point is simply.... gamita ang nahuman sa college... and dont go astray... gamita ang diskarte nga maka trabaho sa imo nahuman...

[lodyl]

i know that #1 reason why daghan ganahan mag agent is always about money, mao bitaw daghan garaon ng agent (not all but most sa ako nasugatan mga hilas...), even if nausik lang ang gigasto sa ginikananan pa eskwela... kung mag cc r aman diay sila naypa wala nalang sila ni skwela ug dugay sa college naypa ni kuha nalang sila anang pang cc nga course.... kay usik ra jud...

Aw, pero kanang mga kinaiya nga garaon bai... wala natay mabuhat ana... ilaha man gud na, ang atoa nalang ani, sa pag reklamo/supo ana nila basta motukar na ilahang mga gara... hahahahaha...

Pero wala pud ta kahibalo bai, i think dili pud baya tanan agents "nausik lang ang gigasto sa ginikanan sa eskwela"... kay kung gasto ang hisgutan, aw, i think nabawi na sa ginikanan ang ilahang gigasto kay dagko baya na sila ug sweldo (kana kung ninghatag pud ni sila sa ilahang ginikanan)...

Actually bai, sauna, kiwawan pud jud ko aning mga nag work ug CCs, mura ug they have their own world... Pero, sa dihang naka try ko ug work ug CC, nakasabot ko ngano nag ingon ana na sila... like most of them kay dili baya taga CEBU, mostly from other provinces like leyte, davao, cdo, etc... so pag ari nila sa cebu, matud pa sa ka batch nako before nga bayot (bisexual daw sya matud pa niya... hehehehehe...) nga taga Davao, mura kuno sya ug nakalingkawas pag ari niya ug Cebu.. hahahahaha... Ug naa pud ko naistorya nga ahead lang nako ug 1 batch, I think naa to sya sa iyahang early 50s ug ni ask jud ko niya why nag CC sya ug ang iyahang rason kay instead nga mag abroad sya nga mawili sa iyahang pamilya, mas maayo pa daw nga mag CC sya kay bisan ug mas gamay compared sa abroad ang kita, at least, more than enough pud daw to feed sa iyahang pamilya minus the mingaw...

Pero, nakabantay pud ko nga bisan ug they have the money to spend, kay lagi mga dagko ug sweldo, mabiktima man lang gihapon diay ni sila sa "TINGBITS aka tingbitay"...

[wache]

paitas mga ni undang ug skuyla para mo trabaho ug callcenter, daghan raba kay kog kaila

[lodyl]

personal experienced ni nako it sucks to be a college drop out, ni drop out ko sa uc kay amo gikulata ako maestro nga dili ko pa graduaton... ug nagmahay ko nga dili nako ka eskwela ug balik ug wa naka human...

reality sucks.... most companies are still looking for papers... wether we like it or not... thats reality...

onething lang jud ang masulti nako "DISKARTE", ive started from the bottom and worked my way-up... thats how i get my experienced... DISKARTE

still if you have the chance to finish you college education... it is worth...

let's be realistic we cant change the fact nga mao nay nahitabo karon... musgot mog sa dili..

my point is simply.... gamita ang nahuman sa college... and dont go astray... gamita ang diskarte nga maka trabaho sa imo nahuman...

hahahahaha.. nalingaw man ko aning imo ingon bai oi nga gikulata jud ninyo imo maestro... louya gud... hahahahahaha...

ug sakto jud ka bai, pangitaan jud ta ug papers sa mga kompanya... pero about sa nahuman, dili baya tanan ning graduate kay gusto nila ilahang course... ang uban gali kay igo lang gihuman pero ang work nila kay 180 degrees kalayo sa ilahang gi graduatan nga course... like sample nako kay kato akoang mentor sa editing (video), Civil Engineering grad sya pero nag filmmaking sya...