U.S. Senators Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) and Jim Justice (R-W.V.) last week introduced the Keep Call Centers in America Act to ensure when Americans call a call center, they can speak to a human located in the United States.
"If you're calling customer service, chances are your day isn't going great. On those frustrating days, you should be able to talk to a real human being right here in the U.S.," Gallego said. "My bill will encourage companies to keep their call centers in the U.S. and require that they tell you up front if you're talking to an AI bot, protecting American jobs and making your day easier."
"All Americans deserve good service. When folks pick up the phone and ask for help, they shouldn't have to deal with AI robots or be routed to someone across the world. This bill puts American workers first and ensures people can talk to a real person who understands them when they need help," Justice said.
The Keep Call Centers in America Act would do the following:
- Require companies to report to the Department of Labor (DOL) when moving call center operations outside of the United States. DOL would maintain a publicly available list of companies that have offshored call center operations. Employers on the list would be ineligible for new federal awards, and if they have an award, they would have to pay a monthly penalty and become ineligible if they are still on the list in one year.
- Require agencies to give preference to employers not on the list when awarding contracts.
- Require call center workers to disclose the location of the call center or if AI is being used.
- Require foreign call centers to transfer communications to a call center in the U.S. if requested by a customer.
- Require a DOL report on the amount/location of federal call center work and on job losses associated with AI use for customer service.
The proposed legislation is already gaining support from organizations like the Communications Workers of America.
"CWA strongly supports the Keep Call Centers in America Act. This much-needed legislation protects U.S. call center jobs and addresses the growing threats posed by artificial intelligence and offshoring," said CWA Director of Government Affairs Dan Mauer. "Historically, companies have offshored customer service jobs to avoid paying good union wages and benefits. Now companies are using AI to deskill and speed up work and displace jobs, which undermines worker rights and degrades service quality for consumers.?Our taxpayer dollars should not be used to reward this race to the bottom. We applaud the introduction of the Keep Call Centers in America Act and urge Congress to pass it without delay."
Mario Matulich, president of Customer Management Practice (CMP), notes that the bill "highlights what consumers have been demanding for years: better, faster, and more accessible service."
But, he cautions, "the solution isn't to avoid innovation, it's to mold it into an effective system, responsibly. AI is already here...We need to be prepared to implement it thoughtfully and enable companies to deliver faster resolutions, reduce customer effort, and designate human agents the time to focus on higher-value and emotional interactions. The CX winners are already seeing success by combining AI with the emotional intelligence of customer contact professionals.
"Protecting jobs and improving CX are not mutually exclusive," Matulich continues. "When done right, AI is not a threat to the customer experience. It is a vehicle for empowering agents to transition from reading scripts to making human connections. As a community, our focus should be on investing in innovative AI technology that will make self-service more valuable for those who want it, while enabling agents to deliver better, more personalized support for those who need it.
"If the impact of this bill is to demonstrate the enduring importance of human employees in the support process, then it is well-intentioned. But if it discourages technological innovation and prevents us from preparing agents for next-generation work, it will ultimately come at the expense of the customer experience and job security," he concludes.