BT denies using Indian IT workers on low wages
Thursday, 08 May 2003, 19:30 IST   |    1 Comments
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NEW DELHI: British Telecom (BT) has denied reports that Indian software professionals subcontracted to work for the company in Britain are paid less than their British counterparts. The company's denial came in the wake of a newspaper report that workers of Mahindra BT, a joint venture between India's Mahindra and Mahindra and BT, could be working on BT projects in Britain for as little as a quarter of the usual wage. "The total package of the Indian sub-contractors working on BT projects is comparable to those of their Britain counterparts and well above Britain's national wage," said a statement pasted on BT's official website Wednesday. "They (the Indian software engineers employed by Mahindra BT) do not lose out." The Indian software professionals are reportedly working on key BT projects, including its core IT systems. BT has a 43 percent stake in Mahindra BT that was set up in 1986 and currently has over 3,000 employees. Pune-based Mahindra BT's customers' include AT&T, Alcatel, Ericsson, Hewlett Packard-India, Microsoft (India) and Qatar Telecom. BT, which is already facing the wrath of workers' union over plans to open two new call centres employing 2,200 people in India, said it subcontracts a number of projects to Mahindra BT. "The work is typically basic software maintenance on legacy systems. This approach allows BT's software engineers to be freed-up to concentrate on other work. "We are extremely proud of our employment record and of our commitment to corporate social responsibility," the BT statement said. "Our approach is good for BT's British workers, as it means they can work on leading edge developments; good for Mahindra's Indian employees, who get excellent experience and the chance to work abroad; good for BT's customers, who get the benefits from outsourcing; and good for BT's shareholders, for whom this approach demonstrates a well-managed company." Last month, Australia's leading telecommunication and information services company, Telstra, was charged with using Indian computer workers on "sweatshop wages" to replace higher paid Australians. The claims have been strongly rejected by Telstra and Indian IT giants - Infosys Technologies and Satyam Computer Services - engaged by the Australian firm.
Source: IANS
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