Our leader was accused of exploiting third world labor

by MYTCH PLETE

A few months ago, the social media community had been on fire about a comment made by Mark Williams, an executive at LiveWorld, Inc., on a post of Dennis Yu, Chief Technology Officer at Content Factory, saying that hiring offshore at $3/hour rate is exploitation.

Ironic isn’t it? Considering his role at Wal-Mart was managing the negative social comments about how they mistreat their employees.

This statement gained a lot of comments and reactions from different people. 

Standard wages are relative to the national economy.

John Jonas, Founder of onlinejobs.ph commented “The original trolling was actually about the ethics of paying someone a different amount than what a job was “worth”. That argument doesn’t hold up even in the USA as companies move from expensive places (San Fran) to less expensive places (Utah) to save money. Sometimes the moves are necessary just to stay in business.”

More of his comment are shown in the image.

The standard cost of living varies from country to country, and so does the standard wage. A dollar in the Philippines goes much further than a dollar in New York City. Ten dollars will pay for much less stuff in America than its equivalent in peso will buy in the Philippines.

As such, paying someone a wage based on their economy is in no way exploitation – this is what Matt Plapp, Head ROI Expert at Driven Media Solutions said in his comment; giving examples of how his friends in Kentucky, New York and L.A. have the same job but all paid different wages based on the economics of that region.

Outsourcing gives growing businesses a competitive edge.

The natural outcome is for businesses get labor from less developed countries because they can hire at a lower cost than they can locally. Thus, reducing cost but not compromising the quality of work.

Outsourcing benefits not just the clients but the employees as well. John Huntinghouse, the Digital Content Manager for Epic Marketing, said, “Outsourcing a great team = better results for the clients and improved living wages for employees. This is a main driver of how countries grow, economically speaking, to allow them to thrive and have higher standards of living. Every life matters and efforts in improving the lives of families in other countries shouldn’t be constantly viewed as a negative.”

Let’s take a look at some of the comments made by other business owners who outsource.

John remarked on the pains of hiring locally and expressed how VAs in the Philippines helped him achieve his mission.

Julia McCoy of Express Writers shared her thoughts on hiring offshore.

Chris Ducker, also known as the the “Virtual CEO”, a serial entrepreneur who owns and operates three businesses in the Philippines, also made his comment about his incredible Filipino staff.

Jeff Hunter, an Outsourcing Tycoon  said he does not discriminate when it comes to talent.

And the accused, Dennis Yu, who actually treats his VAs like family.

There is no doubt VAs can make reliable, cost-effective employees for businesses, but how do they feel about their wages?

Here are the comments of some of Content Factory VAs that are paid with a starting wage of $3/hour.

Ping agreed that the same job in New York won’t get you the same pay in another state and that $3/hour is just the right rate for new hire.

“I don’t feel exploited.” Alain said. He believes he is receiving a fair rate as the cost of living in the Philippines is lowered compared to the Western countries. And, as his skill set grows, so will the pay.

While having time to enjoy his family and hobbies because of the flexible schedule, Tom is okay with his pay as he gets to work with awesome brands. “Exert more effort if you want to rise faster,” he said.

G’Ralz explained why $3/hour is way above than the minimum wage in the Philippines. He values the relationships built and the opportunity to create impact more than a few extra dollars per hour.

Kim feels that she gets more than what she contributes right now. The training and guidance from the company helps her improve everyday. Besides, nobody said it’s going to be $3/hour forever!

Working is never about JUST the pay.

More than just receiving great pay, we, employees seek more — satisfaction, good work relationships, and training and development. We are all human beings, after all.

Being treated as family is what really counts. That’s why I am just so blessed to be part of Content Factory! We are not machines, we are a team working together from different parts of the planet, coordinating online and in person.

And, we don’t just work and learn, we also love to have fun!

                                                                                                        Pardon the crappy picture. ☺

So, to sum this up:

• The value of a dollar varies from place to place, and so does the standard wage. A $3/hour rate in New York is way too low, but it can feed a family in the Philippines.
• Outsourcing helps businesses grow as it is cost-effective, efficient, and strategic. At the same time, it gives life-changing opportunities to offshore employees.
• $3/hour is just a STARTING rate, which means, you’ll get a raise based on your performance. Your pay depends on the effort you exert. Plus, you’re not going to do it on your own, you have mentors and teammates to help you out!
• Working is more than just the pay that we’re getting. It’s a big check to be in a company that offers respect, provides opportunity, extends appreciation, and above all, remains open to feedback on how the company could do better to serve clients and build the team.

A $3/hour STARTING rate to work from home with a flexible schedule and a very supportive team is definitely a great catch for us here in the Philippines. You see, I’m a full time mother and a full time employee at the same time. Others may see the pay as exploitive but believe it or not, I earn more than my husband gets from working locally!

If exploiting can help build a family’s future, then I’d love to be exploited! LOL

That’s my take. How about yours?

P.S.

The power of the community has turned Mark Williams around to see his error. He said that it was not his intention to hurt anyone’s feelings or disparage anyone and he apologized to everyone he has offended. Now, he is studying the programs of Content Factory and sees the awesomeness of the VAs —  loyal, joyful, hard-working people.