StarTek, a U.S. provider of business outsourcing services, will close its call center in Costa Rica on Aug. 30, according to MarketWatch, part of The Wall Street Digital Network.
The closure would mean the dismissal of the company’s 550 employees at their America Free Zone facilities in the province of Heredia, who managed customer relations and technical support calls, primarily for U.S. telecom companies.
“The difficult decision to close our Heredia site was made as part of our strategic plan to optimize our capacity and continue building upon the efficient solutions we provide our clients,” said Chad Carlson, StarTek president and CEO. “This decision was not due to performance of our employees in Costa Rica, and we are grateful for their service to StarTek and our clients,” the news outlet quoted Carlson as saying, citing a press release from StarTek headquarters in Denver.
Attempts on Friday by The Tico Times to confirm the announcement with Startek were unsuccessful. A local Startek representatives said company General Manager Paola Herrera will issue an official statement next Tuesday.
“StarTek will be holding job fairs and offering assistance to the employees to find other jobs in Heredia,” the press release from Denver said.
The company’s yearly financial report stated that “during the year ending December 31, 2013, we recognized important losses in our Latin America segment associated with the furniture, fixtures and leasehold improvements at our site in Costa Rica after an impairment analysis indicated estimated future cash flows were insufficient to support the carrying values.”
StarTek launched its Costa Rica operation in 2010. At the time, Vice President Luis Liberman attended the opening of its facilities.
The closing adds to those by Intel’s manufacturing center, Bank of America financial services center, PET Packaging, and appliance manufacturer and distributor MABE.
