NCO Group Announces Surrey BC Employees Vote to Join a Union

HORSHAM, Pa., March 1  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NCO Group, Inc. ("NCO" or the "Company") (NASDAQ:NCOG), a leading provider of business process outsourcing services, announced today that the employees at its call center in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada voted to join the B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union ("BCGEU").

If the Company is able to reach a collective agreement, it will only cover the Company's Surrey, British Columbia call center.  The 1,400 telephone representatives constitute approximately seven percent of NCO's total employees.  This facility provides customer relationship management services and generated approximately two percent of NCO's consolidated 2005 revenue. The financial impact of such organizing effort is not known at the current time.  Currently, the Company is not aware of any union organizing efforts at any of its other facilities.

Commenting on this development, Michael J. Barrist, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "We are very disappointed that our Surrey associates have voted for union representation.  Against a backdrop of increasing pricing pressure from our clients, a strengthening Canadian dollar and a client-driven trend towards moving North American call center business off-shore, the BCGEU convinced approximately 51 percent of the employees who voted that the union could improve their pay, benefits and working conditions. We have informed the clients who are serviced by the Surrey facility, and once they have the opportunity to integrate this information into their long-range planning as to where they want NCO to perform their work, we will be in a better position to inform our investors of the impact of this development."

NCO Group, Inc. is a leading provider of business process outsourcing services including accounts receivable management, customer relationship management and other services.  NCO provides services through over 100 offices in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, India, the Philippines, the Caribbean and Panama.

  For further information contact:

  NCO Investor Relations
  [phone]
  http://www.ncogroup.com/



Certain statements in this press release, including, without limitation, statements as to the impact of the union organizing effort, statements as to fluctuations in quarterly operating results, statements concerning projections, statements concerning strategic initiatives, statements as to the economy and its effects on NCO's business, statements as to trends, statements as to NCO's or management's beliefs, expectations or opinions, and all other statements in this press release, other than historical facts, are forward- looking statements, as such term is defined in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which are intended to be covered by the safe harbors created thereby. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, are subject to change at any time and may be affected by various factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from the expected or planned results.  In addition to the factors discussed above, certain other factors, including without limitation, the risk that NCO will not be able to implement its business strategy as and when planned, the risk that NCO will not be able to realize operating efficiencies in the integration of its acquisitions or that the restructuring charges will be greater than anticipated, risks related to union organizing efforts at the Company's facilities, risks related to the ERP implementation, risks related to the final outcome of the environmental liability, risks related to past and possible future terrorists attacks, risks related to the economy, the risk that NCO will not be able to improve margins, risks relating to growth and acquisitions, including the acquisition of Risk Management Alternatives, Inc., risks related to fluctuations in quarterly operating results, risks related to the timing of contracts, risks related to international operations, and other risks detailed from time to time in NCO's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004, can cause actual results and developments to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.  The Company disclaims any intent or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, regardless of whether new information becomes available, future developments occur or otherwise. 

DATASOURCE: NCO Group, Inc.



CONTACT:  NCO Investor Relations, [phone]



Web site:  http://www.ncogroup.com/ 

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