US

Americans May Finally Get Customer Service They Don’t Need Translated

Official Federal Communications Commission photo

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced Thursday it is moving to onshore U.S. call center jobs and implement English proficiency requirements for call takers.

The FCC voted to launch a new proceeding seeking comment on proposals that would incentivize companies to bring call center jobs back to the U.S. and improve customer service at existing call centers, including a proposal which would require call takers to be proficient in American Standard English, according to the agency’s Thursday news release. The agency is also exploring new methods to “financially deter illegal robocalls” originating overseas.

U.S. consumers commonly “experience frustration and poor customer service when they connect with a call center located abroad,” per the release. The agency added there can often be “communication and other barriers that make it difficult, if not impossible, for consumers to get a satisfactory resolution to their problems.”

“Americans get frustrated when they call a U.S. business and end up connecting with a call center located abroad,” FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said in a statement on Thursday. “Too often, foreign call centers have meant confusing service, delayed support, and even security risks. In many cases, scammers get trained at legitimate call centers and either access your data illegally or take their training to a foreign robocall operation. It is time for this offshoring to end.”

“American consumers deserve call centers that speak proficient English, provide clear answers, and are based here at home—not halfway around the world,” Carr continued.

Carr added that his agency “will also be opening up a new front in our efforts to block illegal robocalls from abroad by examining the targeted use of fees or bonds.”

When reached for comment, the FCC referred the Daily Caller News Foundation to Carr’s statement from Thursday.

Carr also asserted during a Thursday press conference that “at the end of the day, American callers should expect and deserve to reach American call centers.”

Nearly 7 in 10 American companies outsource at least one department in order to offshore call centers, Customer Experience Dive reported in March, citing data from the FCC. The U.S. employs an estimated 2.5 million to 3 million employees in the call center industry, according to an August 2024 analysis from the Site Selection Group.

In August 2025, Democratic Michigan Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet and Republican Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Fitzpatrickintroduced a bipartisan bill aiming to discourage U.S. businesses from shipping call center jobs overseas, safeguard American jobs and consumers and ensure quality customer service. Moreover, Republican West Virginia Sen. Jim Justice and Democratic Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego similarly unveiled legislation in July 2025 which would require U.S. companies to report to the Department of Labor whenever they move call center operations outside of the nation.

The U.S. is projected to lose an estimated 150,000 call center jobs by 2033, according to a fact sheet on Gallego’s website that cites Bureau of Labor Statistics data.