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THURSDAY AUGUST 21, 2025
Diaspora members in Jamaica Parliament? Debate resurfaces ahead of general election The question of whether Jamaicans in the diaspora should sit in the nation’s Parliament is back in the spotlight, after the People’s National Party (PNP) unveiled its manifesto ahead of the September 3 general election. Under the pillar “Constitutional Reform for Sovereignty and Justice,” the party pledged sweeping changes, including replacing the British monarch with a Jamaican president, adopting the Caribbean Court of Justice as the final appellate court, introducing impeachment and recall provisions, and considering fixed election dates and term limits. Mark Golding
continues on B4 – Diaspora Members
Andrew Holness
Proposed US law to keep call center jobs in America could impact Caribbean nations U.S. lawmakers have introduced new legislation aimed at curbing the outsourcing of call center jobs, a move that could also have major implications for Caribbean economies that rely heavily on business process outsourcing (BPO). Congresswoman Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI-08) and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01) unveiled the bipartisan Keep Call
Centers in America Act of 2025, designed to discourage companies from moving call center operations abroad. The bill would require businesses to notify the Department of Labor before relocating work overseas, penalize companies that offshore customer service roles, and mandate that customers be informed if their call is being handled outside the U.S. or by artificial intelligence. “Shipping call centers overseas kills American jobs and causes headaches for consumers,” McDonald Rivet said. Fitzpatrick added that outsourcing “weakens our economic security, erodes consumer protections, and removes jobs and investment
from our communities.” Call centers currently employ about three million Americans, but automation and outsourcing are threatening those jobs, the lawmakers say. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that 150,000 U.S. call center jobs could disappear by 2033. While the measure is framed as a boost for U.S. workers, it could have knock-on effects for countries like Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and Belize, where call centers are a cornerstone of the services economy. The BPO industry is one of the fastest-growing continues on B1 – Call center jobs
W H AT ’ S I N S I D E
NEWSMAKER Guyanese Justice Arif Bulkan appointed to Caribbean Court of Justice bench a3
CARIBBEAN Fired Trinidad Central Bank Gov. seeks $9.8M in damages over ‘orchestrated plot’ a5
STRICTLY LEGAL USCIS updates family immigration process: No more warnings before denials B1
Traders & Investors Check out the Jamaica Stock Exchange Weekly Bulletin A6