2004-3-4
This is Bob Doughty with the VOA Special English Economics
Report.
Companies often give work to an outside business that can do the
job for less money than their own employees could. This is called
outsourcing. Outsourcing has become a political issue in the
campaign for the American presidential election in November.
Many companies in the United States have been moving jobs to
countries where costs are much lower. Factory production jobs have
moved away for years. But the jobs now also involve computer
programming and other skills based on knowledge.
Labor groups and workers are angry. They point to reports that
say the United States has lost two-and-a-half million jobs since
two-thousand-one. Most were jobs in manufacturing. Some states have
lost more jobs than others. But no one seems to know for sure how
many jobs left the country.
There was a recession. Jobs were cut. Yet, so far, the economic
recovery has produced fewer jobs than expected. So outsourcing has
created an emotional debate.
Lou Dobbs has a business news program on CNN television. He keeps
a list of companies that have sent jobs to foreign countries. Almost
every night, Mister Dobbs talks about what he calls the "exporting
of America."
Gregory Mankiw [man-CUE] is the chairman of the Council of
Economic Advisers to President Bush. Recently Mister Mankiw said
outsourcing is probably good for the economy in the long term. He
said it makes sense to import goods or services produced at lower
cost. He called it "just a new way of doing international trade."
Most economists would probably agree. But Democrats and
Republicans criticized Mister Mankiw. He later apologized for having
appeared to praise the loss of United States jobs.
Criticism of outsourcing has led some people to condemn free
trade. They argue that if jobs are lost to foreign countries, then
America should seek protective measures.
The director general of the World Trade Organization does not see
it that way. Supachai Panitchpakdi says one-third of all economic
growth in the United States since nineteen-ninety resulted from
international trade.
Mister Supachai says training and education can create new
opportunities for workers. He says exports have helped create
five-million new jobs in America in the last ten years. He says
those jobs pay ten-percent above the average.
This VOA Special English Economics Report was written by Mario
Ritter. This is Bob Doughty.