Journalists outraged by newspaper outsourcing pay rates in India
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Version 0 of 1. The outsourcing of production work by newspaper companies has become increasingly common over the last decade. It’s part of the cost-cutting culture that arrived with the downturn in profits. Journalists, understandably, don’t like it. After all, their jobs have vanished. Many believe the quality of work has suffered, although it has to be said that such complaints have generally quietened. But some outsourcing continues to remain controversial, as the following case - as highlighted by shocked Scottish journalists - illustrates. Earlier this month, HoldTheFrontPage reported that 12 jobs at Scottish Provincial Press (SPP), in pre-press and design, were to be outsourced to a company in India, Express KCS. The Unite union said workers in Inverness, Wick and Golspie would lose their jobs by the end of the month and a Unite officer, Willie Wallace, was quoted as saying: “It seems strange that they’re doing this to save money but these are jobs that are going in the Highlands that are hard to come by. A lot of these people have been there for 25 years. They won’t get similar work at all in that area.” What Unite didn’t realise is just how much SPP will save by switching the jobs to India. According to the advert on an Indian jobs website, the replacement layout artists and graphic designers are being hired for £1,500 to £2,500 a year. They will be expected to have university degrees, prior work experience and computer skills and will need to fulfil a long list of responsibilities to obtain the jobs. They will work in Gurgaon, a financial and industrial city near New Delhi that boasts the third highest per capita income in India. According to the Observer’s former correspondent in India, Gethin Chamberlain, the salaries on offer are barely the legal minimum for Delhi. This is contested by Express KCS. Its chief executive, Robert Berkeley, who said his company pays “slightly higher than the market rate” for the advertised services. He said: “If our salaries were too low, we wouldn’t attract recruits. India is a very competitive employment market place. And we are competing with other companies for staff. “Salaries in India, with a very different cost of living, cannot be compared to Britain. And university degrees are not comparable either. “We are taking on entry-level people who we then have to train. We pay the rate for the job.” SPP, a private company, publishes 15 newspapers in the north of Scotland, including the Inverness Courier, Northern Scot, Highland News and John O’Groat Journal. Other regional publishers, such as Johnston Press (publisher of the Scotsman), also outsourced work to Express KCS, having transferred its advertising production work there in 2012. Following the revelation about Indian pay rates, several journalists have registered their upset at outsourcing by SPP and Johnston Press on Facebook. “What a shocker,” wrote Alastair McKay. Alison Hardie thought it depressing and that a motion at the Scottish parliament “would be in order.” Lesley Johnston Jones remarked: “It makes me livid.” Their views were echoed by Audrey Gillan and Libby Brooks. At the time of writing, I have not managed to reach SPP. |