CWA: “Why Shipping Call Centers Jobs Overseas Hurts Us Back Home”

 

How would you feel if your personal data is open to the public? That is basically the sentiment of every American as reported by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) Legislative Director Shane Larson. Larson claimed that “there’s a lack of security protection for your data when it’s housed overseas. “I think that Americans would be outraged if every American knew that their data is that open to identity theft”. Her recommendation was for the US to be stricter in screening overseas call centers’ data privacy security with the help of the U.S. Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act (H.R. 3496). This is a recent bi-partisan bill introduced by Rep. Tim Bishop (D-NY) and Rep. Dave McKinley (R-WV), co-sponsored by Reps. Michael Michaud (D-ME), Gene Green (D-TX), Michael Grimm (R-NY), and 57 others. It prohibits companies that employ overseas call centers from receiving federal grants or loans for at least 5 years. It also intends to provide consumers their basic rights such as knowing where the call is being placed and being transferred to a US-based call center if they wanted to. “A foreign, overseas call center must notify a U.S. consumer where they are located, and that you also have a right to ask to be transferred to a call center based in the United States.”

 

Aside from that, sending call center jobs overseas had hurt the US economically. Recently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics also reported that some 500, 000 American call center jobs have already been sent overseas. This means that more than half a million American workers have lost their jobs in favor of overseas workers. That is getting attention in the congress as it is not acceptable at this time when every US leader is trying to get more job openings for their constituents. 

Source: <a href=”

http://www.fowlertribune.com/news/x248718062/Report-Consumer-Info-At-Risk-in-Overseas-Call-Centers“>Flowler Tribune</a>

 

Quakey Day in South RP

An early 7.3 magnitude earthquake awakens the southern parts of the Philippines. The tremor had an epicenter at 100 kilometers southwest of Cotabato or at 120 south of Pagadian. A depth of 604.5 kilometers was recorded by both the US Geological Survey and the Philippines institute of Volcanology and Seismology at 6:08 in the morning.

Another earthquake was recorded at 6:19 a.m. This time it’s rated at 5.4 magnitude and 594.8 kilometers depth with 95 kilometers west southwest of Cotabato or 115 kilometers south of Pagadian epicenter.

USGS recorded a third quake with a magnitude at 7.6 by 6:51 a.m. Its epicenter was 115 kilometers southwest of Cotabato or 145 kilometers south of Pagadian. The tremor has a depth of 576.3 kilometers. Phivolcs, on the other hand, recorded this third quake at a magnitude of 6.8 a minute later.

The fourth quake was recorded by the USGS at 7:15 a.m. with a magnitude of 7.4 but Philvocs at 6.7. The epicenter was estimated 120 kilometers south or Pagadian or 120 kilometers west south west of Cotabato with a depth of 616.7 kilometers.

An aftershock was felt late, at 8:50 a.m., with a magnitude of 4.9 and estimated epicenter of 100 kilometers southwest of Cotabato or 142 kilometers south of Pagadian. Another aftershock rocked the south by 9:44 a.m. with an estimated 91 kilometers southwest of Cotabato or 136 kilometers south Pagadian. It has a depth of 592.2 kilometers.

The series of quakes were also felt as far as the Bicol Region in Luzon and the metropolitan Manila. Phivolcs director Renato Solidum explained that the depth of an earthquake affects the area where it is felt. The deeper the epicenter is, the larger the area it reaches because the depth amplifies it. Also, deep epicenter earthquakes are usually none damaging because the shakings often diminish at the surface but strongly felt nonetheless. These series of earthquakes, he reports, as effects of Molucca sea plate and Mindanao Island movements. It should be remembered that the Philippines is one of the countries sitting on the Pacific Ring of Fire and thus, frequent seismic and volcanic activities can be felt.

 

Volkswagen Takes Over Toyota’s Largest Automaker Title

Be careful of what you wish for, it may come true… I love Volkswagen bugs and I wish I can have one of the late-model. I also wish that all vehicles around the world are made of cutie buggies. How it never occurred to me that one day, these bugs will really take the lead in the world of auto making. Just recently, while most auto makers are cost cutting to the bone, Volkswagen is busy making millions of little buggies!

Little buggies are going to rake every street and road around the world as the automaker takes over Porsche. Still, the two companies’ combined numbers is 400,000 beyond that of Toyota. Earlier this year though, the Japanese automaker stripped half its normal production and closed all production plants. On top of that, the European Cash For Clunkers program also benefited the sales of Volkswagen. That explains the 4.4 million built cars of Volkswagen-Porsche to date.

A good question is up to when will VW rule the statistics? It is apparent that the world economy is trying to pick up, away from the gloom of recession. Before the global economic crises, Toyota Motors is already producing ten million cars a year. The catch is that it is going to make only 70% of its capacity. Even with that figure, Volkswagen reign in auto making may not be actually permanent. If they have already made 4.4 mil to date, already a combination of the two merged companies and just a month away from the end of the year, that will threaten the new acquired title.

As of publishing, Toyota is ranked behind Volkswagen and General Motors.

 

Reliving 9-11…for Good?

8 years ago, in a supposedly ordinary Tuesday morning, almost 3,000 lives were lost in a terrorist attack. September 11 became a significant 9/11, the mark of terrorism in the world’s most powerful country. Years and years after that, the United States of America’s government and countrymen thru the efforts of thousands and thousands of military men and women tirelessly trail terrorists around the world. To date, a huge number of the military, navy, and army are still stationed in the desserts of Iraq and Afghanistan trying to keep terrorists from the soils of Uncle Sam.

People around the world antagonize the doings of the terrorists who have hi-jacked and killed more people than you and I can ever imagine by crashing two planes on two different sites: the twin towers and the pentagon. Aside from these two key institutions, other high rise buildings affected of the fall of the twin skyscrapers also tumbled to dust. Thousands more were injured and the number of fatalities have rise. To this day, there are still a good number of missing persons linked to that act of terrorism. Maybe they will never be found. All the same, may they rest in peace.

The irony is that while the Americas is earning its respect and peace in Uncle Sam’s golden soils, those that are stationed in the Middle East are yet to live in peace. One day, they will also find their peace- when we also bid them their ‘rest in pace’ or should we say ‘rest in pieces’. 8 years may not take the hurt from the hearts and minds of Americans for that fateful act but isn’t it too long to keep the grudge? In those war zones, isn’t it a lot more hurting are being done? Or is it a way to contain the hurt in those lands and act as there had been nothing going on in the land of golden dreams?