Call centres

Impact of new technologies
One aspect of the spread of western influence has been through the development of technology. The Internet has enabled people to access information and communicate almost instantly and linked to it, the use of satellite links and improved telecommunications has resulted in a new phenomenon – the development of overseas call centres. Many companies in the UK, USA and Australia are moving their customer call centres and administration departments to India and China. So when someone in England phones their bank, their call is dealt with in India.

Cutting costs
A key reason for this happening is down to money. Companies can save huge sums by employing people in India and China, as salaries are much lower than in places like the UK and USA. For example, in Hyderabad, call centre workers working for the bank HSBC are paid 20-25% of what UK staff earn. Some people argue that the working conditions are also less subject to government regulation, as companies do not have to pay towards pensions. Also, the workers can be made to work much longer hours, and are given shorter holidays.

Learning to be ‘British’
In India five call centres are opening every month, as many people are keen to work in them. Last year, one firm said that it had received 8,000 applications from one job advertisement. However, the employees are expected to know about British culture – they are made to watch videos of British soap operas in order to become familiar with a range of accents, they learn about regional foods, football teams and the British fascination with the weather. Some call centres even have screens showing weather maps so that the ‘telephone bank tellers’ can discuss the weather in the caller’s local area!

Cultural imperialism?
In some call centres, the employees are expected to sound British or American, and one company has been accused of racism in that it made its employees change their names to British ones rather than Indian. The idea is that the caller will have no idea that they are speaking to someone in a different continent. But does this approach mean that westerners are unwilling to deal with anything that is different, and why is their lifestyle seen as being so important? Are we in the West still responsible for a form of imperialism - albeit cultural?