U.S. workers displaced by outsourcing may hate the practice, but it has its detractors in India, too, where a new novel called One Night at the Call Center is flying off the shelves. The book, by Chetan Bhagat, tells the story of call-center workers who must adopt fake accents and endure verbal abuse from U.S. customers struggling with new computers and appliances. "Remember, a 35-year-old American's brain and IQ is the same as a 10-year-old Indian's brain," says a fictional call-center instructor. "Americans are dumb, just accept it. I don't want anyone losing their cool during the calls." Bhagat, a 31-year-old investment banker, says this is really what call-center instructors teach trainees. He urges the Indian government to create infrastructure for more productive employment. "A call center job is not any better than a sweat shop. Is this the best our young people can do?"
Sweating Out Calls
U.S. workers displaced by outsourcing may hate the practice, but it has its detractors in India, too, where a new novel called One Night at the Call Center is flying off the shelves. The book, by Chetan Bhagat, tells the story of call-center workers who must adopt fake accents and endure verbal abuse from U.S. […]
