 
kapil
The Kapil
join:2000-04-26
Chicago, IL
| The almighty Dollar It's an open secret you won't find any economist or politician talking about...the falling value of the dollar.
While the redneck crowd makes for a loud cheering section, the reality is that America has sold it's future for band-aid fixes to a lot of problems.
Jobs have gone overseas, so has research and the talent that performs that research. We don't make squat at home anymore...and it looks like we've just about had it with buying crap too.
The country is in debt up to its eyeballs...government, industry and citizens.
It doesn't take an economic genius to figure out why the dollar is in a free fall.
A strong currency is equated with a strong nation, so no one likes to cheer when the currency is going down the tubes...but this story illustrates that the declining value of the dollar, if managed properly, may present the last major hope we have for turning this ship around.
The cheaper dollar makes it competitive to build and service things at home...and makes imported stuff cost prohibitive.
If this results in enough companies "on-shoring" jobs and manufacturing again, we can put our people to work...at real jobs and wages.
If the job market is healthy, the consumer spending will pick up and consumers will regain some confidence in the housing and finance markets.
...and all will be well, until Jenna Bush is old enough to run for office.
Maybe this was the Bush economic plan this whole time....bring the country to the edge of ruin, so that we stop buying VW's and buy Chevy's again.
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»PropertyMaps.com - Real-time, map based, nationwide MLS property search! | |
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Rob
In Deo speramus, God Bless the USA
Premium
join:2001-08-25
Kendall, FL
 ·Comcast
| Re: The almighty Dollar said by kapil  :It's an open secret you won't find any economist or politician talking about...the falling value of the dollar. There are few politicians who openly speak about the falling value of the dollar - but they are quickly "hushed" by their party or the MSM. | |
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gaforces
United We Stand, Divided We Fall
join:2002-04-07
Santa Cruz, CA | The major flaw in that economic strategy is ... the cost of living goes up, wages are not. | |
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| SilverSurfer
join:2007-08-19
2 edits | said by kapil :[...] Maybe this was the Bush economic plan this whole time....bring the country to the edge of ruin, so that we stop buying VW's and buy Chevy's again. That your statements seem to be the unintended consequences of an idiot at the helm for 8 yrs, I can buy. But nothing is ever quite that simple/fortuitous/coincidental. Maybe Convergys sees the writing on the wall and wants to get in on breaking our rule of law with impunity since it looks like our illustrious shitheads Congre$$ are set to give the telcos immunity.
If the telcos can get immunity for breaking the law and going along with their crony fuckbuddies Congre$$ional reps, then there's really no way to tell what any other industry can away with as well. Retroactive immunity for the telcos pretty much voids our entire system. All bets are off, and, as long as you can buy your own Senator, then you needn't worry about being held accountable. For anything. Convergys may as well climb aboard the immunity gravy train as well since retroactive immunity sets a precedent. | |
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GOLFnSUN
Enjoy the sun
Premium
join:2002-03-03
Avalon, NJ
1 edit | The jobs are leaving Canada and some are coming to US. So the weaker dollar is resulting in more US jobs. And it has reduced the trade deficit for the 1st time in 5 years. | |
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NOCMan
Verizon Fios User
Premium
join:2004-09-30
Flower Mound, TX | Re: The almighty Dollar Does not account for the 7 trillion debt our country has ran up. Sorry but a half trillion trade deficit pales in comparison to the bill we have run up that takes Taxes to pay. | |
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join:2001-06-27
Land O Lakes, FL
2 edits | Re: The almighty Dollar Add to that 7 trillion thecosts of the Global Poverty Act spopnsored by Obama that will commit the US to an additional .7% of GDP approximately $845 billion annually in more foreign aid. The Act also commits the US to the millennium development goals set by the UN which include banning small arms and weapons, ratifying a series of treaties including the International Criminal Court treaty, the Kyoto protocol, the Convention on Biological Diversity. | |
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Sean
join:2004-01-23
Ottawa
 ·Bell Sympatico
| Re: The almighty Dollar said by lesopp :Add to that 7 trillion thecosts of the Global Poverty Act spopnsored by Obama that will commit the US to an additional .7% of GDP approximately $845 billion annually in more foreign aid. The Act also commits the US to the millennium development goals set by the UN which include banning small arms and weapons, ratifying a series of treaties including the International Criminal Court treaty, the Kyoto protocol, the Convention on Biological Diversity. Yes, but you won't be spending $400B every two weeks in Iraq. So Obama's plan is cheaper.
Nice try. | |
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| | | | | lesopp
join:2001-06-27
Land O Lakes, FL
| Re: The almighty Dollar His plan is cheaper if you make up facts. How did you arrive at $400 billion every two weeks? That would come to 10.4 trillion a year which is more than the current national debt.
I thought his plan was to abandon Iraq, let all the Bush tax cuts expire and commit the "windfall" to some new social programs.
Personally I'd rather see the other social programs fixed before more are created. Isn't that what we were promised, first by the Republicans in 2004 and then by the Democrats in 2006? | |
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pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD
·Comcast
| said by GOLFnSUN :The jobs are leaving Canada and some are coming to US. So the weaker dollar is resulting in more US jobs. And it has reduced the trade deficit for the 1st time in 5 years. Most economists understand that a weak dollar is not universally bad and a strong dollar is not universally good. The only people making a big deal about the weak dollar are just those who hate Bush and want to blame him for the supposedly bad situation.
If the dollar was the strongest ever and we were suffering the "ill effects" of a strong dollar, we'd be hearing from these same people about how a strong dollar is so awful and we need to go back to a weak dollar.
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This isn't fair! I was only supposed to hate just ONE presidential candidate! | |
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Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02
Host:
Road Runner
PC gaming GAMES
PC gaming Tech
2 edits | Re: The almighty Dollar quote:
The only people making a big deal about the weak dollar are just those who hate Bush and want to blame him for the supposedly bad situation.
Edit: Never mind. That's a very insightful and intellectually robust point you're making there. | |
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pkarlos_76
join:2004-08-24
Edmonton, AB
| said by kapil :It's an open secret you won't find any economist or politician talking about...the falling value of the dollar. While the redneck crowd makes for a loud cheering section, the reality is that America has sold it's future for band-aid fixes to a lot of problems. Jobs have gone overseas, so has research and the talent that performs that research. We don't make squat at home anymore...and it looks like we've just about had it with buying crap too. The country is in debt up to its eyeballs...government, industry and citizens. It doesn't take an economic genius to figure out why the dollar is in a free fall. A strong currency is equated with a strong nation, so no one likes to cheer when the currency is going down the tubes...but this story illustrates that the declining value of the dollar, if managed properly, may present the last major hope we have for turning this ship around. The cheaper dollar makes it competitive to build and service things at home...and makes imported stuff cost prohibitive. If this results in enough companies "on-shoring" jobs and manufacturing again, we can put our people to work...at real jobs and wages. If the job market is healthy, the consumer spending will pick up and consumers will regain some confidence in the housing and finance markets. ...and all will be well, until Jenna Bush is old enough to run for office. Maybe this was the Bush economic plan this whole time....bring the country to the edge of ruin, so that we stop buying VW's and buy Chevy's again. Although this could be positive for Alberta Labour shortage, I'm not FOND of my personal information being available to persons outside my country of residence! | |
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j_on_fire
join:2005-02-24
canada
| Riggghhht Uhh yeah... wouldn't a falling dollar be more incentive to keep the jobs in america?
I know why they are leaving Canada, due to the strong dollar. Just last week Dell closed their Edmonton, AB call center due to lack of workforce and high wages. It is a super hot economy in Alberta, and even with the city giving Dell so many concessions they still had to leave.
It's sad to see Convergy's leave. Though they treated their employees like $h**, they probably got better service than a call center in India. | |
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ykronic
Premium
join:2006-01-31
Canada
| Re: Riggghhht I worked for them for 3 years and were it not for myself and friends making out day entertaining I'd have walked out on them long before then. But it's not all Convergys's fault how management acts, a lot of it has to do with the project they happen to get and the pressures/expectations the client puts on them. My TL and our morning OM were both great guys and were always going to bat for us. our night OM was/is a pretentious cow but that's a whole other story. | |
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h8verizonDSL
Had fiber today
join:2005-02-25
Middletown, DE
| Convergys-Bad Ideal My employer E. I. DuPont de Nemours and Co. just outsourced all HR duties to Convergys. Convergys stores your personal data with overseas contractors. Convergys handles payroll for the State of Florida employees in which 108,000 of them had their data stolen.
First, I have to deal with data breaches, and now I can't even talk to an English speaking CSR.  | |
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| SilverSurfer
join:2007-08-19
| Re: Convergys-Bad Ideal said by h8verizonDSL :M Convergys stores your personal data with overseas contractors. Convergys handles payroll for the State of Florida employees in which 108,000 of them had their data stolen. Case in point: Imagine what kind immunity Convergys can buy when a wayward executive and/or employee sell X thousands of employee data to an overseas outfit and skips town with the $$$$$$$$$$$. | |
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james
join:2001-02-26
antarctica | lol Ottawa. Is the "Ottowa Citizen" anything like the "Washengton Post"? | |
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| accusync
join:2004-07-16
Rigaud, QC | Re: lol Ottawa. No its more like the "Sodom on the Potomac" | |
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james
join:2001-02-26
antarctica | lol karl fixed it. | |
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Blackhood5
I Escaped Convergys
Premium
join:2002-08-24
Tallahassee, FL
clubs:
| Money Is all that company cares about. I know it first hand since I worked there for 1.5 years. First doing cable internet tech support for Cablevision in LI. Then billing for Cablevision in Bronx and Brooklyn. Finally moved back to tech support for DSL via SBC before and during the SBC/Yahoo days.
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| hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH | Re: Money this company also handles Sprint-Nextel customers. Looks like more customer issues when calling in. | |
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Swingerhead
Premium
join:2004-04-06
Richmond, VA
 ·Verizon FIOS
·Comcast
| Worked there too, back in 1994 in Orlando Ha, that place was crazy. I supported probably 10 different companies. All I can remember is SNET and Cisco. It went down hill fast. Ended up getting fired for rollerblading through the office so cant blame them there but Im sure I would have waked out at some point. | |
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Snickerdo
Premium
join:2001-02-28
Niagara Falls, ON
| Re: Worked there too, back in 1994 in Orlando Convergys is an absolute shit employer to work for. I wish everyone who works at the site in Welland, ON the best - there's a Canadian-owned call centre in NF which is desperately trying to hire people. They'll have no problem getting a job that pays more with better benefits and people who don't treat you like cattle.
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I swear that I will faithfully and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen. | |
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StEC
Proud
Premium
join:2003-11-27
NiagaraFalls
1 edit | Re: Worked there too, back in 1994 in Orlando Ummm I worked for Convergys for almost 3 years I loved the job they are a fantastic company to work for. I got good pay and excellent benefits and I never had a problem requesting time off. We were always treated to pizza party's and we always won prizes (Good expensive prizes!) for a job well done. If I was still living in Welland I would go back to Convergys in a heartbeat!
All my friends also LOVE working there and I have many friends there! Where do you get this idea that they are horrible??? | |
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Snickerdo
Premium
join:2001-02-28
Niagara Falls, ON
| Re: Worked there too, back in 1994 in Orlando said by StEC :Ummm I worked for Convergys for almost 3 years I loved the job they are a fantastic company to work for. I got good pay and excellent benefits and I never had a problem requesting time off. We were always treated to pizza party's and we always won prizes (Good expensive prizes!) for a job well done. If I was still living in Welland I would go back to Convergys in a heartbeat! All my friends also LOVE working there and I have many friends there! Where do you get this idea that they are horrible??? I take it Convergys is the only call centre you've ever worked for? Ignorance is bliss, dude.
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I swear that I will faithfully and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen. | |
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Puchimint
@shawcable.net
| Re: Worked there too, back in 1994 in Orlando I work at the Convergys in Edmonton Alberta Canada, and it's the second call center I've worked at, at least my location is a good place, my manager is pretty understanding about last minute changes to my schedule (I'm a college student) I can work on homework while I take calls, it's a very relaxed and laid back atmosphere, best place I've ever worked at. I don't want to stay there the rest of my life (and it looks like I might not have a choice anyway), but it's a great place, and I like the AT&T Mobility project as well. It's relative of course I've been loucky to have great managers, but the place always has a sociable atmosphere and they do give away things like high end laptops, ps3s and wiis in draws, the job can get stressful but it's good for a college student. | |
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uther
join:2001-12-04
Saint Louis, MO
| I worked at Convergys 2001-2002 - SBC DSL Tech Support project at Hazelwood MO.
You're absolutely right.. all they care about is the dollar...
Kinda sad when they only paid $9/hr to do the same work SBC had in-house techs doing for at least double that PLUS benefits.
Oh well, it was a good place to use as a stepping stone to bigger and better things. Got in, survivied my year of their BS, got out. | |
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andyb
Premium
join:2003-05-29
SW Ontario | To Costly? I would think its cheaper since there is no health care costs at least in Ontario and the wages are at least the same or lower here so where do they come up with the figures to suggest otherwise? | |
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Snickerdo
Premium
join:2001-02-28
Niagara Falls, ON
| Re: To Costly? said by andyb :I would think its cheaper since there is no health care costs at least in Ontario and the wages are at least the same or lower here so where do they come up with the figures to suggest otherwise? I wouldn't be surprised if they lost so much money in MLO judgements/settlements that they found it unprofitable to do business in jurisdictions that have actual codified employment standards. 
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I swear that I will faithfully and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen. | |
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pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD
·Comcast
| said by andyb :I would think its cheaper since there is no health care costs at least in Ontario ... Sure there are healthcare costs. Just because you may not pay out of pocket for private health insurance doesn't mean that healthcare costs you nothing.
These costs are simply passed down to the Canadian people in the form of higher taxes. Any Canadian company that pays taxes in Canada also pushes these costs down to anyone who purchases products or services from said company.
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This isn't fair! I was only supposed to hate just ONE presidential candidate! | |
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Snickerdo
Premium
join:2001-02-28
Niagara Falls, ON
| Re: To Costly? said by pnh102 :These costs are simply passed down to the Canadian people in the form of higher taxes. Any Canadian company that pays taxes in Canada also pushes these costs down to anyone who purchases products or services from said company. Canadians aren't stupid. We know that healthcare costs money, and you totally missed andyb's point. His point is that it would be cheaper for the EMPLOYER to operate in Canada rather than the US, since the EMPLOYER doesn't have to pay a portion of the employee's health insurance, and our corporate taxes are generally lower here than in many US states. Instead, we - the employees - pay for universal health care in the form of personal taxes.
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I swear that I will faithfully and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen. | |
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ottawa_guy
join:2005-06-03
Ottawa, ON
 ·Storm Internet
| So sorry for the workers....but it's crap! I worked at Convergys for about 2 years on the TWC RR NHD contract and then moved over to TWC Business Class/Brighthouse Business Solutions contract.
They treated their employees like trash. If your sick, don't take a sick day! Ha! The Ontario government allows you 7 paid emergency days per year without question, so I will take one.
Computers were slow and trash for the applications we needed to run. 1/2 of the machines would not even let you access the network without errors. Your phone system would always mess up and their time system always messed up.
Don't go to the washroom without taking a break because there will be people right at your cubicle asking why and what and where.
They treat you like pre-school.
Overall, I feel sorry for the guys working in that center (right now I hear it's all AT&T Wireless now, since they lost the Time Warner contract last year to India, for chat at least.)
Hoping they find better jobs in the Ottawa area, there is definitely other options, but to throw a new call center away since Ottawa's center was just built with a multi million investment in 2005 does not sound rash....
.... oh right! It's Convergys - as one of the dictionaries on the web states "The McDonalds of technicial support"
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purely
Premium
join:2008-01-11
Gloucester, ON
| Re: So sorry for the workers....but it's crap! I also worked for Convergys in Ottawa, for a little over two years, and hated it. It didn't pay too badly, but the moral was downright rock bottom. I remember having to do chat, email and phone support for RR all at the same time cause the supervisors would always undershedule..sheesh. I am glad that I do not work for them anymore hehe | |
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Snickerdo
Premium
join:2001-02-28
Niagara Falls, ON
| said by ottawa_guy :They treated their employees like trash. If your sick, don't take a sick day! Ha! The Ontario government allows you 7 paid emergency days per year without question, so I will take one. Actually, under the Ontario Employment Standards Act it's ten unpaid "emergency" days per year. There are no legal requirements for paid sick days. Under the Ontario Human Rights Act, however, an employer is still required to accommodate you when ill. This is ultimately the reason why these companies are closing up shop. In Canada, they are legally bound to treat their employees like... humans. These US call centre corporations will often break the law in the way they treat their employees, get sued and then be fined by the government and have to pay out settlements. As I said, the Ministry of Labour has a 3-4 person team in St. Catharines dedicated to dealing with just Sitel complaints. I'm sure they get flooded with Convergys complaints around here, too.
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I swear that I will faithfully and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen. | |
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Nova Scotia
| Nova Scotia Woudn't suprise me in the slightest. | |
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Space_Ranger
join:2002-07-15
| Hmm..or maybe not.. hmmm
I can't find the orginal source for the comment from Convergys chief executive David Doughtery..
All sources seem to originate from the Ottawa-Citizen and Canada.com and the comment is just lumped in with a store not directly dealing with convergys. If he had told analysts then there should be some other source. Considering the Winnipeg center just picked up support Bell Express Vu with training ongoing and 1st call to hit in less than 2 weeks I question this. Perhaps one or two of the centers that are smaller and maybe don't make profit might be in question (Welland ? One of the 4 centers in Nova Scotia)
At least 4 of the centers actaully make good profit even with the increase in the dollar and many of the centers are actaully working on getting Canada companies with a rumor of Bell outsourcing more with thier change in ownership.
I personally have found the company doesn't screw you over more than anyone else - I enjoy my paid sick days and the flexable schedule I get | |
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ottawaconvergys8
@cvgs.net
| Ottawa Call Centre I currently still work at a call centre in Ottawa and my God is it terrible. The management here is terrible. Nothing ever gets done, there's no such thing as floor support for any of the contracts and so much internal employee HR issues, it's unbelievable! The only reason I'm staying is 'cause I need these benefits and I'm not too interested on starting a new probation period. If the centre does in fact close... I'm looking fwd to that severance pay... anyone knows how they calculate it? | |
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modartson
@shawcable.net
| Re: Ottawa Call Centre If they do close they will know well in advance and they will not pay the severance. They will give you the notice in lieu of pay which is completely legal.
If you're that worried about it, maybe try looking for a better job... there's lots out there. | |
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MrBentor
join:2003-02-18
Seattle, WA | Simple.... Convergys is a horrible company. Been there - done that. Convergys is a horrible company.
»www.convergyssucks.com/ | |
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lrllrlrr
@cvgs.net
| Poor journalism starts fires I completely agree, there are no sources and no specific reference to the Ottawa center other than that which is implied by the writer of the Citizen article.
Centers in Canada are still an excellent value to CVG. The weakening of the US $ caused CVG to miss targets and as a result they have to make quick cuts to get back on track. Centers are always under review, as well they should be, and its no secret that non-profitable or non-sustainable centers should and will be cut. Ottawa doesn't fall under either of these categories.
CVG is actively searching Canadian companies to support (Bell was mentioned previously above) so closing a center with an enormous bilingual community would not make long term sense. | |
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Daveeee
@cvgs.net
| Stop blaming journalism and look at the facts The transcript of the Convergys Q4 2007 earnings call says it all.
..."Third, we're making the best use of our people and facilities around the globe. Given the weakness of the U.S. dollar, we're closing unprofitable sites and moving work to locations elsewhere in the world. For example, we're shifting some business from Canada to the Philippines."
Source:
»seekingalpha.com/article/62104-c···ce=yahoo | |
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Convergys Moving Out Of Canada
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