Prognosis for 2006

Australia’s The Age mentions Call-centre backpacking in its prognosis for 2006:

Next time you get a call from Bangalore, it might be someone you know - British, American and Australian graduates are following their jobs offshore to India and working in call centres. Between 20,000 and 30,000 expats work in Indian IT already.

There simply aren't enough Indian graduates to keep up with the outsourced boom - a recent report estimates that outsourcing needs 120,000 extra English-speaking professionals over the next five years.

Companies such as Launch Offshore recruit staff from Britain, signing graduates up for a year on Indian wages (as little as $350 a month, but the cost of living is low).

Many jump at the chance: 10 months of 40-hour weeks, followed by two months of paid holiday to travel the country.