Call centre workers told they can keep their jobs if they relocate 7,000 miles to the Philippines

Staff have criticised a mobile phone company after it said they could move to the Philippines in order to keep their jobs some 7,000 miles away. Workers on Oranges night shift customer services team, in Darlington, are being offered the chance to take up roles with the firms service partner IBM in the Filipino capital Manila.

When some individuals asked about the transfer package they were given details of local salaries and told a "rice allowance" was paid to those in the roles. One staff member, who did not want to be named, claimed the proposed transfer to Manila had been a "smokescreen" so the firm could avoid making voluntary redundancies.



She said: "It is a complete joke. No-one in their right mind would want to move to Manila. When we asked for details of the transfer package we were handed a sheet of paper with what the IBM employees receive which is less than £200 a month, with a rice allowance and a laundry allowance."

Darlington MP Jenny Chapman said: "I am lost for words. It is hard to take this Manila move seriously, nor consider it as a credible proposition. I really cannot imagine people working in the offices of Darlington Orange considering moving to the Philippines and I would be fascinated to know how many people take them up on this offer."