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IBM offers jobs in India to Americans it lays off

8:51 AM Tue, Feb 03, 2009 |
By Sheila Lennon    Email this author |   Email this entry

IBM Offers To Move Laid Off Workers To India. InformationWeek says IBM, which has laid off more than 4,000 American workers in the last month, is offering them a way to stay employed.

The climate is warm, there's no shortage of exotic food, and the cost of living is rock bottom. That's IBM's pitch to the laid-off American workers it's offering to place in India. The catch: Wages in the country are pennies-on-the-dollar compared to U.S. salaries.

Under a program called Project Match, IBM will help workers laid off from domestic sites obtain travel and visa assistance for countries in which Big Blue has openings. Mostly that's developing markets like India, China, and Brazil.

"IBM has established Project Match to help you locate potential job opportunities in growth markets where your skills are in demand," IBM says in an internal notice on the initiative. "Should you accept a position in one of these countries, IBM offers financial assistance to offset moving costs, provides immigration support, such as visa assistance, and other support to help ease the transition of an international move." ...

In addition to India, China, and Brazil, IBM is offering to relocate redundant U.S. workers to a number of other developing markets, including Mexico, the Czech Republic, Russia, South Africa, Nigeria, and the United Arab Emirates, according to the notice, which was obtained Monday by InformationWeek.

IBM sees it kind of like the Peace Corps -- a chance to live and work in a developing country:

"It's more of a vehicle for people who want to expand their life experience by working somewhere else," said the spokesman. "A lot of people want to work in India."

Update: Coincidentally, Doc Searls links to a post by his friend Brian Benz that indicates the ranks of those let go from IBM are growing:

I'm one of the IBM layoffs:

A hard post to write.....My position as EAS WW Principal Consultant at IBM has been eliminated. Apparently I'm one of about 15,000 IBM staff let go this and next week.

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7 Comments

David said:

If IBM thinks it's such a great deal living in a 3rd world country, they should send their high priced execs there.



IBM = I've been moved said:

IBM has ALWAYS sought to place its employees in developing countries, and developing counties (in the USA) for that matter. That's how it achieved its acronym:

I'VE BEEN MOVED.



David said:

To IBM, the cool aide drinker: do they have to wear 3 piece suits with white shirts only, in the "developing" countries?

It's so nice to think of a big company helping out the employees it just screwed. Kind of warms your heart.



joyce said:

I think it would be kind of interesting to live in Mexico for a few years. The catch is, I assume the people who do this may be okay in terms of buying stuff locally with their low salaries, but they could do zero saving for retirement and presumably aren't accumulating Social Security benefits

Still, I'd take them up on it. It sounds like fun, and it is a job.



David Roche said:

This is what is wrong with Corporate America today. I used to hold IBM in high regards before this announcement. I no longer do so and will not use their consulting services in the future. When will the lunacy end?



no name said:

What a Joke.
India is offering jobs to Americans.
Real shame.
Wakeup rednecks



Computer Geek said:

After these workers discover that they can't come back because at their new wages they will have suppressed their income and thus their social security benefits (remember that social security benefits are structured by their salary and thus they will not be able to receive the same amount that they would have and when it's time to retire, they will have less paid in) will be significantly less than they would otherwise be entitled to and probably won't have enough to retire on in the US. They will however qualify for other tax benefits as they will now be under the poverty level for the US so the rest of the American taxpayers can subsidize them while they are overseas as they will qualify for earned income credit, food stamps and any other benefit that is afforded to the under-privileged in our American society - thanks IBM for increasing the tax burden so you can save a few bucks!




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