MANILA - Outsourcing firm Convergys is expecting to hire about 3,500 additional employees by year-end to fill newly opened sites, including its recently launched site in Glorietta 5 in Makati City.

Convergys has added 4 new facilities this year. The site in Glorietta 5 is its 12th and the largest with a 3,500-seat capacity. Of this, about 2,041 seats have already been occupied.

"This year is a banner year for us. Despite the crisis, we launched 4 out of 5 new sites. We have close to 4,000 employees on our workforce, and we believe we can overachieve our 20,000 employee target by year-end," Zamora said.

Convergys already has 17,500 employees as of October, according to company manager Marife Zamora. For 2009, the company had originally hoped to reach a 20,000 headcount.

Company Senior Vice President for Human Resources Clark Handy said that the demand for outsourcing jobs continues to strengthen, citing the company's aggressive expansion in the country.

"Demand for Philippine-based offshore sites are up, demand for Filipino workers are up, and our clients actually demand that they do business in the Philippines," Handy said.

Early this week, DPC Data Inc. Chief Executive Officer Peter Schmitt said the global outsourcing industry may face a "profit squeeze" over the next 7 years as developed countries such as the United States struggle to recover from the effects of the economic crisis.

Specifically, Schmitt said the jobs deficit in the US may lower the possibilities of moving their company operations to the Philippines and other outsourcing destinations.