Barbados and other Caribbean countries that have business process outsourcing (BPO) entities, especially call centres, with links to the United States (US) are being warned about a potential threat to this investment niche.
A Keep Call Centres in America Act of 2025, which has been tabled in the US Congress, seeks to discourage American companies from shipping call centre jobs overseas, protect American jobs and consumers, and ensure quality service.
The legislation was introduced recently by US Congresswoman Kristen McDonald Rivet and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick.
Dr David E. Lewis, vice president of Manchester Trade Limited Inc., an international business advisory firm based in Washington, DC, US and with clients in the Caribbean has advised that “the potential passage of the Keep Call Centres in America Act of 2025 could significantly impact the vibrant and growing call centre industries in the Caribbean and Latin American (CALA) regions”.
He sees potential fallout in a number of areas including reduced demand and job losses, economic impact, increased competition and need for diversification, and shifting service offerings and operational adjustments.
“While the Keep Call Centres in America Act of 2025 primarily targets US businesses, its ripple effects could significantly impact the call centre and BPO industries in the Caribbean and Latin America, potentially leading to job losses, economic shifts, and a greater need for diversification and strategic adaptation in these regions,” Lewis said.
Strong disincentive
Manchester Trade will continue assessing the progress of these bills in the US Congress and implications for clients in the region. We welcome your feedback and concerns as to operations in the region and the challenges and opportunities arising from this initiative.” Elaborating on the potential negative impacts for the region, he noted that the act “penalises companies that offshore call centre jobs by making them ineligible for federal grants and loans and placing them on a public list”. “This creates a strong disincentive for US businesses to maintain or expand their offshore call centre operations in CALA countries,” Lewis stated.
“Countries like Belize, with significant BPO sectors relying on US outsourcing, could see a slowdown in job growth or even job losses if the bill leads to a decrease in demand for offshore call centre services.
“The Act encourages companies to keep or bring call centre jobs back to the United States, potentially at the expense of countries in CALA that currently serve as nearshore locations.”
Lewis also mentioned the potential loss of revenue, pointing out that “the call centre industry is a major source of revenue for many CALA economies”.
Vital role
He stated: “A decline in this sector could negatively impact their overall economic
growth.
“The BPO sector, which often includes call centres, plays a vital role in several CALA countries. The Act could challenge the continued growth and development of this sector, according to a report from the United Nations Statistical Division.”
The trade expert also spoke about increased competition and need for diversification, including heightened competition for remaining contracts and the need for diversifation.
“CALA call centres would face tougher competition for contracts from companies that are not dependent on US government funding or are willing to navigate the act’s requirements,” he said.
“The act might incentivise CALA countries to diversify their economies and reduce their reliance on US call centre outsourcing. This could mean exploring new services, markets, or focusing on higher-value offerings.
On shifting service offerings and operational adjustments, Lewis said that CALA “will need to ensure they have the capabilities to transfer calls to US-based agents if requested by customers, as mandated by the act”.
“Call centre agents located outside the US, and those using AI, will be required to disclose this information to customers at the beginning of each interaction. This could lead to a preference for US-based human agents and affect customer perceptions of offshore service providers,” he added.
American lawmakers pushing the new legislation said that call centres “employ around three million customer service representatives in the United States, but companies are increasingly shipping those jobs overseas and replacing workers with automated phone and chatbot systems”.
They added that “as a result, the Bureau of Labour Statistics projects 150 000 US call centre jobs will be lost by 2033”.
The Keep Call Centres in America Act of 2025 seeks to do a number of things, including requiring businesses to notify the US Department of Labour before relocating a call centre overseas; empower the Department of Labour to keep a public list of employers that have relocated call centre work overseas and make them ineligible for new federal grants and federally guaranteed loans; and direct agencies to give preference to US employers that are not on the list when awarding contracts, and require that all call centre work performed on federal contracts be conducted in the US. (SC)
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