Virtual Assistants £1.90 Per Hour

[Tomas Tovey]

Recently in my marketing business I’ve been employing virtual assistants from the Philippines to do social media content, answering messages and emails and data entry. Even have one cold calling. Some may think it’s unethical and others think it’s great!
Personally I think it’s a positive. I have 3 assistants I pay them all double what they asked for because of their work is great!

Do you use VAs in your business?
What are your thoughts on this?

 

[wesaving]

I bet you get some for £2.00 Per Hour too?

 

[Tomas Tovey]

I bet you get some for £2.00 Per Hour too?

Great thinking but if I just opening stated they charge £1.80 an hour I don’t think I could squeeze my £2 margin in…

Im not benefiting in anyway other than the publics opinion in which I value on the subject

 

[Ozzy]

Some may think it’s unethical and others think it’s great!

The ethical argument boils down to whether they are being looked after and whether that income is fair value in their local currency for the work they do. Primark was exposed by Panarama for exploitation in the cheap clothes they supplied. When Panarama went public Primark cut all ties with their Indian supply chain which caused more hardship than the original exploitation caused. This is all in the public domain on the BBC website.

If for £1.90 an hour these people are just scraping by and working for that rate because they have no choice then that's exploiting a situation.

Personally I don't mind employing people from overseas, and in some instances it can be cheaper, but I'd be mindful to do the homework on their conditions, visit them in person, treat them as employees, and ensure they receive the same opportunities and benefits as if employed in my office in the UK.

 

[wesaving]

Great thinking but if I just opening stated they charge £1.80 an hour I don’t think I could squeeze my £2 margin in…

Im not benefiting in anyway other than the publics opinion in which I value on the subject

I was joking at the fact you made 2 threads 1. you pay £1.80 2. you pay £1.90 how odd...

 

[Ozzy]

I was joking at the fact you made 2 threads 1. you pay £1.80 2. you pay £1.90 how odd...

I saw that too; zapped the other one now as a duplicate...although it's a bit like buying something for a tenner and then seeing it half price next door

 

[Tomas Tovey]

I saw that too; zapped the other one now as a duplicate...although it's a bit like buying something for a tenner and then seeing it half price next door

I know my mistake didn’t know how to delete the thread ?‍
I’m new round here so play nice ??

 

[fisicx]

I worked on a project with a lender in the Philippines who offered short time loans. Most those borrowing were low paid workers in call centres and similar. Wages were pushed down keep competitive. Maybe that £1.90/hour is subsistence wages.

As to your question, No I don't use a VA. If I were a customer of yours I'd be quite miffed to discover it's not you answering my emails. Unless of course the VA signs off with their own name.

 

[Tomas Tovey]

The ethical argument boils down to whether they are being looked after and whether that income is fair value in their local currency for the work they do. Primark was exposed by Panarama for exploitation in the cheap clothes they supplied. When Panarama went public Primark cut all ties with their Indian supply chain which caused more hardship than the original exploitation caused. This is all in the public domain on the BBC website.

If for £1.90 an hour these people are just scraping by and working for that rate because they have no choice then that's exploiting a situation.

Personally I don't mind employing people from overseas, and in some instances it can be cheaper, but I'd be mindful to do the homework on their conditions, visit them in person, treat them as employees, and ensure they receive the same opportunities and benefits as if employed in my office in the UK.

Thank you for that!

I ensure they are paid well and are looked after such as Christmas bonuses etc!

 

[Tomas Tovey]

I worked on a project with a lender in the Philippines who offered short time loans. Most those borrowing were low paid workers in call centres and similar. Wages were pushed down keep competitive. Maybe that £1.90/hour is subsistence wages.

As to your question, No I don't use a VA. If I were a customer of yours I'd be quite miffed to discover it's not you answering my emails. Unless of course the VA signs off with their own name.

I understand!
The VAs sign off all correspondence and the business is at a level where customers (other than premium) won’t expect me as a reply ?

 

[Mark T Jones]

I don't currently use a VA - though would consider doing so if the need arose.

In that case I'd certainly use on in the UK - ideally close enough to meet occasionally- and would pay the going UK rare

 

[japancool]

I'm from round that part of the world, so my view depends on which hat I'm wearing.

With my nationalist hat on, I'd say it's exploitative and takes advantage of the unfortunate circumstance that people find themselves in.

With my business owner's hat on, I say exploit away!

Seriously though - I think you should pay them what their work is worth to you.

 

[Assistant Advice]

A quick Google search throws up hourly rates for VAs in the Philippines starting at £2.50 during 2021, so I guess they might be due a pay rise soon? (source: payscale.com)

 

[SillyBill]

Perhaps I run a more technical business than some but never understood how you can outsource things (well) like customer interaction or content writing for blogs, newsletters etc. I am only really comfortable having these people on the books and well versed in the business. You need to know a business back-to-front and the products inside out to offer great customer service or to write good content that isn't generic garbage. Sure, outsourced contractors could make corrections, re-word, offer advice, jazz things up etc. but someone who understands the business needs to do the fundamentals before passing it on. My two penneth in any case. I guess in this case if I was paying someone £2.00 an hour, I may get what I pay for back out in value...£16.00 a day in value creation