Effects of the Call Center Industry on the Philippine Labor Market

Abstract

The call center is a flourishing industry in the Philippines. Even though the Philippine economy is flawed by high’ unemployment rate, political instability, and low investors’ confidence, the country was still able to attract businessmen that will support the economy and help alleviate the status of the majority. To sum up, this study aims to look into the effects of the call center industry on the Philippine labor market. Specifically, it seeks to provide answers to the following: General objective: To determine whether call centers can be considered as one of the many alternatives in the Philippine labor market Specific: 1. To identify the benefits of working in a call center, 2. To enumerate the factors detrimental to working in call centers; 3. To determine whether working in a call center can be considered as a long-term career, 4. To describe the general performance or outcome of the call center industry in the Philippines. This study will help solve existing social and economic problems, particularly that of labor and employment. This study will also be of great help to college graduating students for it will give them ideas on job opportunities in the Philippines and about the jobs that are in great demand at present. Call center employees will also benefit from this study in the sense that they will have a deeper understanding of what they are doing, and how they contribute to the society as a whole. Results of this study can be of great help to policy makers because they will be motivated to create policies that will protect the rights of Filipino workers, and also policies that would guarantee the country’s profit from the call centers owned by multinational companies. Generally, through this study, a greater amount of knowledge will be obtained regarding the call center operations especially here in the Philippines, and how it affects the labor market. In addition, since previous studies on call centers seem to be limited, this study will be very useful to those who might want to conduct a similar one in the future. The study utilized an exploratory design. Subjects involved are 75 call center employees from three prominent call centers in the Philippines. These are i-Contacts Corporation, e-Telecare Global Solutions, and TeleTech. They answered questionnaire developed by the researcher to determine their reasons for working in call centers, the benefits and its effectiveness, the factors detrimental to working in call centers and its impact on the workers, the general performance or outcome of the industry in the country, and whether it can be considered as a long-term career. The salary offered in call centers is the top reason why Filipinos venture into that kind of job. They are very much attracted by the companies’ compensation and benefits. The very high salary plus the excellent training and immediate job offered by call centers are the benefits that are very effective for its employees. However, the call center industry is also flawed by a number of factors. Having no fixed schedule, less time for family, friends and recreation, lack of sleep and irregular eating habits are the leading factors that have a high impact on the call center employees. Stress in the workplace is very hazardous to the health of the employees, and this has the highest impact on them among the other detriments. Even so, the call center industry has provided more jobs for the Filipinos. Call centers also enhance the communication skills of the Filipinos through high-quality training on English proficiency, and this gives them a greater edge in the competitive labor market. The call center industry in the Philippines attracts foreign investors, thus promoting good working relationships. Based on the data and results, the researcher recommends that there must be campaigns to promote speaking English at all times. This must be practiced from the home, to school, to the office. The Filipinos should be totally aware of the growth of the call center industry so they too can help in the planning and formulation of local and national policies regarding this. Since call centers are doubling every year, the government should offer assistance in terms of more effective policies for the improvement of the industry. It is also their job to make sure that the rights of call center employees are protected, and that they have a comfortable workplace and equal! opportunities. In connection to the third recommendation, it would also be better if the government will come up with a supervising committee that will keep an eye on the call center operations in the country.