Dell Computers held a job fair in Ottawa Tuesday, making it one of several big-name companies looking for technology workers in the region.

But unlike the positions that once earned Ottawa-Gatineau the nickname "Silicon Valley North," the jobs now offered by Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Chase Credit cards aren't in research and development — they're in customer call centres.

Dell Computers held a job fair Tuesday to fill 1,300 to 1,500 positions at its Ottawa call centre, shown here in 2006.
(CBC)

Dell held its job fair Tuesday at the Nepean Sportsplex in order to find 1,300 to 1,500 workers for the call centre it opened in Kanata last year.

Shelly Morey, a senior staffing advisor at the company, said the technically skilled, bilingual workforce, and the large number of other call centres in the region make it an attractive location.

"We are seeing lots of people with that strong technical knowledge with hardware and software, because of the other centres in the area, which is great," she said.

Craig Babin was among hundreds of job seekers at the job fair.

He said there are few computer programming jobs available, so he will try for a call centre job.

"For now, that's what Ottawa has kind of positioned itself for," he said.

Critics say call centres offer lower pay

The jobs are not research and development jobs like many of the 10,000 cut from Nortel's Ottawa workforce after 2001, and some technology job seekers and other critics have said that they require less skilled workers and aren't as highly paid.

But Morey said Dell is seeking people with a broad range of skills so they can move within the company.

"They  may come in doing one job but very quickly, they can move into another role," she said. "Since back in February or March, we've already promoted or transferred over 400 people within the centre."

Dell spokesman Blair Patacairk said the company is looking for skilled candidates with technical certifications.

"I think it's important people understand that because it's no longer … just a low-end contact centre."

However, he said he could not disclose how much Dell will pay its workers, as the company does not want the information to get out to competitors.