It's not McDonald's burger flippers who are losing their jobs
Its also not lawyers, doctors (at least not directly from outsourcing, other factors do effect doctors), and other high paying jobs.
it's Steel Workers, Garmet Makers, and software engineers.
Garment makers were not for the most part high wage employees. Its more call center employees than software engineers, and to the extent that it is software engineers its more of the most basic program writing. There are more software engineers in the US than there was 10 years ago, there was more 10 years ago than 20 and so on, its not a field that is in decline for outsourcing or any other problem.
Outsourcing is an example of the same sort of comparative advantage that is found in trade. It allows for greater total production and wealth. That fact allows for higher compensation, but that benefit is countered by the greater competition. Its a relatively small scale process at this point, and of course its impact could increase and change as time goes by, but at the moment the evidence appears to be that it results in more loss of low paying jobs while increasing high paying jobs. That is not an unmitigated good thing, certainly the people with low skills, that can be matched by people in the third world working for 1/10th the price (or perhaps not matched but if the cost is 1/10th you could easily higher two or three workers if needed and still come out ahead), might not do so well. Reducing low paying jobs might very well mean "the poor get poorer". But outsourcing certainly isn't hollowing out our economy.
Tim |
