65,000 UK call centre jobs face axe

Indian exodus beckons...

More than 65,000 British call centre jobs could be lost to India as insurers take advantage of cheaper costs and plentiful supplies of skilled staff. Axa, Bupa, Churchill and Royal & Sun Alliance have already switched some call centres to India and management consultancy Accenture is warning that up to one fifth of UK workers could find themselves out of a job. British insurers are attracted by salary savings of up to 20 per cent, cheaper telecoms and transport costs and a pool of skilled, English-speaking workers, claims Accenture. Some Indian call centre workers are trained to chat to UK callers about football, soap operas and even the weather, to help put customers at their ease.