Labour Council spokesperson Mike Gadiel accused Microsoft of betraying Australians. He said that while the software giant expects Australian consumers to be loyal customers, that loyalty isn't being reciprocated.
Gadiel was responding to comments last month by Microsoft Asia-Pacific president, Michael Rawding, after the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade issued a report on the benefits of outsourcing software development to India. Rawding told media that Microsoft would help Australian businesses follow through on the report's findings.
"Given the profits that Microsoft makes from Australia, it is disappointing to witness their clear lack of commitment to Australian jobs," said Gadiel.
"It also highlights the irresponsibility of the Federal Government in putting out that report in the first place," he added.
The NSW Labor Council fears that Microsoft, should it choose to honour its offer, will have a devastating affect on the Australian IT labour market.
"With a large company and a market leader like Microsoft making the call, and offering to facilitate companies to go offshore, you'd have to take the possibility of a major impact [on jobs] fairly seriously," said Gadiel.
Microsoft marketing director Alison Dodd said that Australians are not being betrayed, and now claims that the comments made by Rawding in June may have been taken out of context.
"We actually invest heavily in the Australian economy and the IT skills industry and we are in no way betraying the Australian people," she said.
"We have a philosophy here of Australians first and that goes from recruitment to partners that we use -- we have very strong Australian-centric focus."
Dodd said that Microsoft has partnered with the Federal Government to develop IT skills in the Australian community and has invested AU$1.5 million in Australian universities to develop new products. Which begs the question: why encourage Australian businesses to outsource development in India if the company has invested heavily in training the local workforce?
Microsoft now claims Rawding could have been referring to companies that already operate globally and which Microsoft frequently assists when they're seeking IT skills around the world.
Microsoft Australia denied that India had become favoured in recent months. It said that recent charitable works undertaken by the Gates Foundation in India, such as mass immunisation programs, are separate to the goals of the company.
Why I hate Telstra (one of the many, many, many reasons).
If I was to sign up with Pig Bond - Telstra’s most luxurious plan, I’d be up for about $35 per month with a 450 Meg D/L Limit and 20c per meg after that – just for starters.
Now if I was to sign up with useOz.com (which I have), on their 12 months for $199 with 6 months extra for free, and I was to say D/L on a good day, 80 Meg, per day every day for an entire month, it would have cost me about $8 per month ISP charges, and $6 in local calls for 2400 meg of down load.
However if I had of been with Telstra and it’s skumbag rip off rates, I would have paid $35 for ISP charges, $6 in local calls, and after burning up Telstras pathetic measly money grabbing 450 Meg D/L limit, it would cost me an additional $390 for the remaining 1950 Megs.
I am not being getting paid to plug useOz.com, but comparing an 80 meg down load per session, 4 hours per day for 30 days with useOz.com coming to about $14, compared to Telstras skumbag bare faced rip off coming to about $431...
If this is one of the ways I can big time publically spit in Telstras face, then I will do it.
Not only has Telstra permanently lost all customer loyalty here (a long long time ago actually), they have also made a total and unreserved enemy for life in me. And while I am on this tack, for the Telstra haters, go check out TelstraExposed.com. At the very least you will find out you are not the only one and you will find out why.