BofA is sending more work abroad

Date: Tuesday, October 22, 2002 2:10 PM

************ H-1B NEWSLETTER *************

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The following article appeared on the front page of today's Charlotte
Observer.

The article focuses on sending work abroad, but, as we know, companies that
outsource usually bring in H-1Bs first to be trained by the American workers
that will be eliminated. The LCA database at www.ZaZona.com/LCA-Data lists
several dozen LCAs for "Bank of America" in Charlotte. While computer/IT
workers are their main target the database also shows H-1B positions for
other positions such as auditors, economists, and management. They even have
an H-1B PR shill who probably gave this reporter biased information!

The article does a better than average job of explaining that these
corporate outsourcing policies are having a devastating affect on American
workers. More needs to be written on the human aspect of this job
destruction.

Unfortunately the author makes a common mistake. She overlooks the dangerous
security aspects that banks are accepting to save money by outsourcing
software development to foreign countries.

I will forward this article to the author in hopes that she will follow this
article up with a discussion of the security compromises banks are making
with personal data. You may want to email your thoughts to Tribble and her
newspaper.

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/4338944.htm

Posted on Tue, Oct. 22, 2002

BofA is sending more work abroad
Technology, operations jobs on chopping block
SARAH JANE TRIBBLE
Staff Writer

Bank of America Corp. plans to cut technology and operations jobs through
the end of 2003 and, in the process, replace some employees with lower-cost
labor overseas.

The Charlotte-based bank has already slashed 12.7 percent of its nationwide
technology and operations work force to 22,000 this month from 25,200 in
2001. But more cuts are planned, bank spokeswoman Lisa Gagnon confirmed
Monday.

"We're going to be gradually reducing staff in technology and operations
only," said Gagnon. "We're working hard to make decisions really quickly and
eliminate the uncertainty. It's too early to know who and what areas will be
affected."

Since last October, 75 positions at the bank have been cut, she said,
because the bank is sending to India software programming that is now done
in-house. Some employees say they are worried about their future and are
upset that foreign firms are taking their jobs.

The overall cuts are part of the bank's ongoing strategy to reduce expenses
nationwide. Outsourcing some technology functions, such as software
programming, is a small portion of that strategy, Gagnon said. Other jobs
that fall into the technology and operations area include call center
workers and business analysts.

Bank of America, the nation's largest consumer bank, has repeatedly declined
to say how many jobs will be lost in its cost-cutting effort. The bank has
shrunk its work force by 6.7 percent during the past 12 months to 134,135
nationwide from 143,824.

Gagnon said the technology and operations area is considering all options,
including a hiring freeze, cutting travel expenses and layoffs.

In March, The Observer first reported the bank's plans to outsource less
than 5 percent of its technology operations to overseas companies.
Executives at Bank of America toured India earlier this month. The bank has
contracts with India technology giants Tata Consultancy Services and
Infosys.

The bank joins an increasing number of U.S. companies signing contracts with
India's technology firms to save money.

A recent survey of Fortune 1000 chief information officers showed that the
number of companies outsourcing more than 3 percent of their information
technology budget to India increased to 62 percent in 2001 from 32 percent
in 2000.

The practice of outsourcing to India is also becoming widespread within the
financial industry, with Fidelity Investments and First USA Bank being just
a couple of the many outsourcing with Infosys, according the company.

Charlotte's other big bank, Wachovia Corp., has said it has no plans to send
significant amount of technology work overseas, but has performed some
development and testing offshore.

Many of Bank of America's technology employees are at Charlotte's Gateway
Village, a main hub of Bank of America's technology operations.

"The workplace is in turmoil and nobody is feeling safe," one bank employee
said in an interview by e-mail, asking that his name not be printed for fear
of losing his job.

Printouts of an internal Web site posting earlier this month, obtained by
The Observer, confirm layoffs in the technology and operations area and
address employee concerns.

"Recently, you might have heard that a few associates were displaced. This
is true," states a posting by bank manager David White. "It is also true
that there could be future impacts. ... We are in an adjustment phase, and I
understand that it can be unnerving.

"I apologize for that, but please know we are doing what is best for the
organization."

After a series of acquisitions, the bank has been consolidating its
operations and focusing on improving its coast-to-coast business. In the
economic slump, the bank has performed well compared with its peers.

Last week, it beat analysts' estimates and reported a third-quarter net
income of $2.24 billion, or $1.45 per share, up from $841 million, or $0.51
per share, reported a year ago.

Employee unrest

Some of the company's technology employees, many of them programmers with an
average salary of $70,000 to $100,000, say they are waiting to see who will
lose their jobs next.

Laid-off employees said they have been asked to sign two sets of papers: One
states that the employee will receive two weeks' severance for every year he
or she worked for the bank. The other says severance will be canceled if the
employees talk to the media or quit before a certain date. They've also been
asked to help train their Indian counterparts before their final day.

A small group of current and former employees told The Observer last week it
was difficult to work with their futures being uncertain. They worried about
finding work and the prospect of leaving Charlotte in search of high-tech
jobs. A few even talked of leaving the technology world.

"The days of being a developer at Bank of America are numbered," said a
programmer worried about supporting a wife and children.

The employees declined to give their names on the record, for fear of losing
their jobs or severance.

A few were sipping beers, saying that it didn't matter what they did because
their jobs were gone anyway.

"I call it being fired," one programmer said.

Local Wachovia Corp. economist Mark Vitner said that while the employment
rate in Charlotte is better than it was six months month ago, it's still
relatively tough to find high-paying jobs. There aren't a lot of big
companies, such as Bank of America, doing large-scale hiring, he said.

Another technology and operations employee is angry that a bank with a red,
white and blue logo is taking jobs away from Americans by outsourcing to
foreign companies.

The Charlotte-area resident was willing to have his name published last
week; then, on Monday, he learned his job was being eliminated in the
downsizing of his division. His severance is being negotiated.

"I don't think this bank has the right to wrap itself in an American flag,"
he said. "I feel very strongly from a patriotic and love-of-Charlotte
point-of-view that this is something that Charlotte needs to know about."

Gagnon, the bank spokeswoman, declined to comment.

Sarah Jane Tribble can be reached at (704) 358-5159;
slunday@charlotteobserver.com.

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