Treasurer Peter Costello today urged Telstra to do all it can to secure up to 450 IT jobs, under threat of being exported to India by IBM.
Telstra and IBM have extended a deal under which IBM manages and develops software applications for Telstra.
IBM said that to be competitive the work will be carried out by its Indian and Australian operations, but the company hopes to retrain and redeploy as many Australian workers as possible.
Costello told ABC radio that Telstra should do its best to keep the jobs in Australia.
"That's why I say Telstra ought to look at that situation very carefully and they have to have a very good reason to show that they can't find adequate Australian employment opportunities and Australians to fill them," he said.
Opposition communications spokesman Lindsay Tanner said Telstra was one of the most profitable companies in the world and must be more accountable.
"Telstra is a government-owned organisation that still is largely a monopoly and it makes all the profits in Australian telecommunications," he told the ABC.
"It's a privileged position and Australians are entitled to expect some degree of social responsibility in return for that privilege."
Tanner said Telstra had plans to send all of its IT activities off-shore and the federal government should intervene.
"Telstra has plans to essentially send almost all of its IT activities offshore, a couple of thousand jobs, a lot of them in Melbourne, will be lost as a result of Telstra's activities," he said.
"If it is allowed to gut our IT sector, that will have a lot of negative consequences for Australian industry."
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In 1987, I worked in the IT dept of a Multinational's local Head Office in Australia, and 50% of the staff there were of Indian nationality. These workers were simply brought in on a 12 months visa, worked the same hours as local staff, but paid less. Their standard of work and work ethic was just as high as other staff. After their 12 months had elapsed, they would be sent home and a new batch would arrive to take their place. The governemt didn't mind back then that workers were being imported to save money on labor costs, under the umbrella of reported IT skills shortages. At least some of their earnings were being spent in Australia in contrast to both the role and its associated remuneration being trundled out of the country completely.
I am, you are, we are Australian !