Techies’ take on Hillary-Trump duel

KOLKATA: With the US presidential election knocking on the door, discussions over who will finally make the final cut has become the ‘”lunch-hour discussion topic” among techies in Kolkata. Most of them have either worked in projects based in the US or are waiting to be sent there. As the details about election campaigns unfold more like a reality show, many in the IT sector insist that they won’t be too happy professionally if Donald Trump emerges a winner.

According to Chatterjee Group senior director

Ayanangshu Banerjee

, this is one of the most bizarre elections in the US history. “Trump, who had till recently nothing to do with politics, is now contesting the poll. Hillary

Clinton

doesn’t have a squeaky-clean image either. Having worked in the US for eight years, I know that the Americans love to keep faith on a trustworthy person. Many of my friends feel it’s difficult to choose between the two,” Banerjee said.

Sukalyan Moitra

(name changed), an associate partner of an US-based IT company, agreed. “For us, it is like choosing between the devil and the deep-blue sea,” Moitra said. With Trump, Moitra fears “too much of protectionism”. “If Trump comes to power, it might become very difficult to send our people to the US,” Moitra said.

Trump seems to enjoy lesser popularity among female techies working in Sector V. “Most of the people are against Trump. He is a misogynist. He is against the people of colour. There is a fear that if Trump comes to power, he might bring down outsourcing. Since Sector V has a lot of US projects, such a decision can directly hit us,” said IT analyst Panchali Kar.

The argument of skilled Americans losing jobs to Indians has been invoked by both Democrats and Republicans in the past. One of the highlights of Clinton’s campaign is her plan to increase minimum wage. If Clinton were to raise the bar, Indian IT companies could see a major cost escalation owing to enhanced salary outgo in their American operations. However, Clinton hasn’t specified the rate at which the minimum wage would be increased. Many in Sector V feel that such promises are often not kept once the elections are over.