AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT ALORICA (11/14/20)

Am I Next? Alorica mass layoffs - Closing Georgia facility

NOVEMBER 14, 2020 — COMPANY WILL CLOSE AUSTIN, TEXAS OFFICE WITH 712 LAYOFFS

Layoffs will commence on or about December, 2021.

JANUARY 8, 2020 — COMPANY WILL CLOSE MENDOTA HEIGHTS, MINNESOTA OFFICE WITH 158 LAYOFFS

Employees were notified that layoffs would occur on March 15, 2020.

A company spokesperson noted, “Globally, we continue to hire, grow and make changes in all of the regions we operate in, While we are exiting this specific location, in 2019 alone we hired tens of thousands of people in North America, calculating to nearly 50% of our employee population based in the U.S.”

DECEMBER 21, 2019 — COMPANY WILL LAY OFF 2,000 U.S. EMPLOYEES, HIRE 9,000 EMPLOYEES IN THE PHILIPPINES.

Continuing with its plan to offshore business processing outsourcing and call center services, the company announced that it would be laying more than 2,000 U.S. workers by closing several operations in Green Bay, Wisconsin; Arizona; California; Florida; Indiana; Michigan; and North Carolina in early 2020.

DECEMBER 10, 2019 — THE COMPANY WILL CLOSE THE TAMPA, FLORIDA FACILITY WITH 487 LAYOFFS AND THE GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN FACILITY WITH 143 LAYOFFS.

The company has announced that it will be permanently closing its call center in Tampa, Florida on March 31, 2020. Employees include 419 operations customer service representatives, 24 operations CSR leads, 16 operations team managers, and various support employees.

This follows the closure of the company’s Green Bay, Wisconsin call center with 143 layoffs. According to a company spokesperson, "As we continue to stay on top of market trends and evolve with our clients’ business needs, we sadly must make changes that sometimes impact our people. We thank each of our departing colleagues for their contributions and we are committed to treating them with respect, as we do all our employees, during this transition."

SEPTEMBER 2, 2019 — ANOTHER CALL CENTER CLOSING

The company has announced that it will be closing its call center in Sunrise, Florida and laying off 216 employees, including 185 customer service representative positions.

According to a company spokesperson, “Alorica's Sunrise, Florida operation is closing due to business needs and operational efficiencies. As we continue to stay on top of market trends and evolve with our clients’ business needs, we sadly must make changes that sometimes impact our people.” The closure will occur between October 31, 2019 and December 31, 2019.

The company also noted the upcoming closure of its Jacksonville facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina by October 31, 2019 with the layoff of 142 employees. Again, the decision was “due to business needs and operational efficiencies and accompanied by the same statement. “As we continue to stay on top of market trends and evolve with our clients’ business needs, we sadly must make changes that sometimes impact our people. We thank each of our departing colleagues for their contributions and we are committed to treating them with respect, as we do all our employees, during this transition.”

UPDATE: DECEMBER 24, 2018 — ANOTHER DOMESTIC ALORICA CALL CENTER CLOSING

The company has announced that it will be closing its call center in Beaumont, Texas and laying off 367 employees. A company spokesperson noted, “As we continue to stay on top of market trends and evolve with our clients’ business needs, we sadly must make changes that sometimes impact our people.”

It appears that the company is shrinking its U.S. footprint while growing its offshore capabilities. In October, 2018, the company closed another facility in Terre Haute, Indiana and laying off approximately 300 workers.

You may wish to review the company’s offshore efforts at: “Alorica Bets Big on Guatemala, to Add 2000 New Staff.” Call center giant Alorica to hire 9,000 in PH but lay off 2,000 in U.S.

Original Post…

Irvine, California-based Alorica, an international provider of business outsourcing services, has filed a WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) Notice with the State of Georgia indicating it would be laying off 635 call center employees in Kennesaw, Georgia and closing the facility which services the telecom, media, and entertainment industries. A company spokesperson offered up the usual corporate-speak platitudes, noting that “As we implement new initiatives to stay on top of market trends and evolve with our clients’ business needs, we sometimes must make changes that impact our people." 

It should come as no surprise to employees, past, present, and future that outsourcing providers, especially call centers, whose business is dependent on contracts, will from time-to-time adjust their workforce to meet current contractual demands. The loss of a single major customer is often enough to send hundreds of employees scrambling for another position. Most of these positions are jobs, not careers, and all employees including middle management are susceptible to the vagaries of contract loss or renegotiation.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life, or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?