Silicon Valley: While 85 per cent of US workers believe offshoring has a negative impact on the American economy, less than 10 per cent of workers are strongly concerned that their own jobs are in danger of being sent overseas, according to a new survey.

Workers in non-supervisory professional and technical roles are more likely than those in either management or hourly and clerical positions to feel strongly that their jobs may be at risk, according to the survey by Watson Wyatt, a leading human capital consulting firm.

"Although American workers, in general are very concerned about the impact of offshoring on the economy, they apparently have little concern offshoring will affect them personally," said Bruce Pfau, national practice director for organisation effectiveness at Watson Wyatt.

"Nevertheless, the degree of this confidence seems to vary somewhat by employee job role."

The recent WorkUSA pulse survey, the second in an ongoing series, reveals that only eight per cent of all respondents are strongly concerned that their own job is at risk, while 22 per cent are concerned to some or a small extent and 69 per cent are not at all concerned.

In terms of gender, men with 10 per cent were more likely to be concerned about employers offshoring their jobs, as opposed to six per cent among women.