Offshoring or offshore outsourcing is the term now being applied to describe the nascent practice among U.S. companies of contracting out the jobs of white-collar workers in service sector industries to firms located beyond our borders. The term is equally applicable to U.S. employers' long-standing practice of outsourcing blue- collar workers' manufacturing jobs to other nations. The outsourcing of service sector jobs to specialized U.S. firms began in response to the early 1980s recessions. Employers increased their focus on the company's core mission and contracted out peripheral activities to other U.S. businesses. The 2001 recession prompted U.S. employers to achieve further efficiencies by tapping into the global supply of labor. They utilized now widely disseminated technologies that permit low cost, good quality, and high speed transmission of voice and data communications to outsource service sector jobs to other nations. Events also transpired in the intervening years that enhanced the ability of other countries (e.g., India and China) to export both goods and services to the United States. Although the U.S. labor market has recovered from the 2001 recession, increasing global economic integration - globalization - has led workers to remain anxious about job security. Offshore outsourcing, which is one form of globalization, has adversely affected particular white-collar jobs: information technology (IT) occupations (e.g., computer programmers, systems analysts, and software engineers) and IT-enabled occupations (e.g., telemarketers and accounting clerks). Factory workers continue to experience job anxiety as their ranks further dwindle at the same time that the U.S. population overall reaps benefits from international trade (e.g., lower priced goods for consumers). Some observers believe that the United States has seen just the tip of the offshoring iceberg. By one estimate, 22% to 29% of all U.S. jobs possess characteristics that will make them susceptible to outsourcing to globally dispersed talent within a 10- to 20-year time frame. Others expect that firms will lose enthusiasm for offshore outsourcing due to various reasons (e.g., less-than- anticipated cost savings, and customer dissatisfaction) and consequently will use the business practice more strategically. No regularly collected series provides data on the total number of workers who thus far have lost jobs to offshoring. Congress has a longstanding interest in assisting workers who lose jobs through no fault of their own. In addition to unemployment benefits, laws currently exist to help individuals undertake education and training. Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) focuses specifically on workers who lose jobs due to international trade. TAA generally does not apply to layoffs in service sector industries, however. Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance (ATAA) provides wage insurance to older workers displaced by trade who accept new jobs paying less than the jobs they lost. S. 122 and S. 1848 would amend ATAA, and S. 1330/H.R. 2202 would extend wage insurance to longtime employees unemployed for reasons in addition to trade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]