Outsourcing's Uneven Impact

[OhioChick]

February 22, 2007, 12:00AM EST

A new study says sending jobs overseas hits some areas of the U.S. much harder than others

The mere mention of outsourcing and its impact on the U.S. is enough to elicit strong emotions on either side of the issue. Proponents argue that relocating low-skill service jobs, like those in customer service or data entry, to foreign shores is necessary to ensure the productivity and competitiveness of the U.S. economy. Detractors say American companies are betraying their own workers and destroying the middle class, all in the name of the almighty dollar (see BusinessWeek.com, 11/8/06, "Outsourcing: Job Killer or Innovation Boost?").

But amid the debate over whether outsourcing is good or bad for the U.S., an important point has been largely ignored: Outsourcing is as much a regional issue as it is a national concern. Certain cities and areas are hit hard, while others remain largely unscathed.

The overlooked point is made plain in a new study from the Brookings Institution that attempts to predict which parts of the country will be most affected by the loss of jobs to foreign shores. Metro areas in the Northeast and the West are most vulnerable, while those in the Midwest and the South are less so, according to the study. "There had been almost no work done on which metropolitan areas would be most affected," says Howard Wial, an economist with Brookings, a think tank based in Washington. "We wanted to address that."

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/feb2007/db20070221_427240.htm?chan=rss_topStories_ssi_5