by IBM has been shedding employees at a rapid rate in the last few years as its mainframe computer and consulting businesses struggle to compete. In a novel twist, it’s new Project Match program will move some adventurous Americans overseas to be closer to new, lower-paid information technology workers.
“IBM has established Project Match to help you locate potential job opportunities in growth markets where your skills are in demand,” IBM says in an internal notice on the initiative. “Should you accept a position in one of these countries, IBM offers financial assistance to offset moving costs, provides immigration support, such as visa assistance, and other support to help ease the transition of an international move.”
InformationWeek says:
The climate is warm, there’s no shortage of exotic food, and the cost of living is rock bottom. That’s IBM’s pitch to the laid-off American workers it’s offering to place in India. The catch: Wages in the country are pennies-on-the-dollar compared to U.S. salaries.
The upside is that the cost of living is also much lower there, making the move potentially very interesting to some workers, especially during a recession at home.
“It’s more of a vehicle for people who want to expand their life experience by working somewhere else,” said the spokesman. “A lot of people want to work in India.”
I think taking advantage of such an opportunity would be a really cool thing to do, especially if one is young and/or childless. Working for a couple years in a foreign, exotic locale would be a source of some great life experience.
