MCALLEN, RGV – A few weeks ago, Gov. Greg Abbott was ready to visit McAllen to officially open a new $17 million bilingual customer care center that when fully developed will employ 600 people at wages of $14 per hour.
The visit had to be scrapped because Spectrum’s refurbished building on 23rd Street just south of Nolana was not ready. Undeterred, Abbott made the announcement with President Trump at the White House on Friday.
“I was proud to join in today’s announcement, and I thank the President and Charter Communications for their commitment to bring jobs back to America, creating hundreds of jobs for hardworking Texans in the process,” Abbott said.
“The Rio Grande Valley has always been a vital part of the Texas economy, and this new facility is a testament to the high-quality workforce in McAllen. As Governor, I will continue to work with the Trump administration and all partners to promote policies that create jobs and spur a new chapter in American economic growth.”
The reason President Trump was involved is that Charter Communications has promised to bring more jobs back from overseas.
“With the opening of our first bilingual call center in McAllen, Texas we’re adding 600 good paying jobs to the Rio Grande Valley and providing a better experience for our Spanish-speaking customers across the country, most of whom previously would have had their calls routed to centers located outside the United States,” said Tom Rutledge, Chair and CEO of Charter Communications. “By bringing these jobs to McAllen, we’re strengthening the South Texas economy, and getting closer to Charter’s goal of hiring 20,000 employees in the next four years.”
Trump said he is delighted Charter has committed to invest $25 billion in the U.S. and to hire 20,000 American workers over the next four years. He noted that following his election victor, Exxon Mobil, Intel and Boeing have announced “billions of dollars” in investments and jobs. He predicted thousands more jobs would be coming back to the United States and that more announcements would be made soon.
“We’re raising a new economic model, the American model,” Trump said. “We’re going to massively eliminate job-killing regulations, that has started already big-league, reduce government burdens and reduce taxes that are crushing American businesses and American workers all over this country.”
Former Texas Governor and current U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry was also at the announcement.
After merging in 2015, Charter Communications, Bright House Networks, and Time Warner Cable created the name brand Spectrum and promised top quality products for customers. “Investments into the combined advanced broadband network of the companies will create faster broadband speeds, affordable phone services for consumers and businesses, and faster financial and customer growth to enhance career development,” the company stated.
In developing the McAllen customer care center, Charter has been working with Workforce Solutions and McAllen Economic Development Corporation. Workforce Solutions helped the company stage a job fair at the McAllen Convention Center. There, the company interviewed potential staff members that had initially applied by visiting the company’s website.
The company has pledged to initially hire 55 people, with wages of $14 dollars per hour plus benefits and tuition reimbursement. After the first batch of employees are hired, 25 to 30 additional workers will be hired per month, creating 450 to 500 jobs in the next year or so.
It is expected that Spectrum’s McAllen customer care center will operate two shifts, running from 7 a.m.to 10 p.m. A third shift, through the night hours, could be added later.
Recruiting for the center is currently underway. Interested applicants should visit jobs.spectrum.com to apply and learn more about careers at Spectrum.
