Call Centers: Yes, We Have Coffee Breaks… Two!

If the political system of our country were run using the metrics used in call centers to measure performance and productivity, we’d have a country to rival Switzerland in efficiency.

That and Frank Bruni’s observation about the world being divided into “the perpetually slighted and the eternally grateful” were the thoughts that came to mind after I read Kabataan Partylist’s Rep. Raymond “Mong” Palatino’s rhetoric delivered early this week which lambasted call center companies for supposedly exploiting their employees and something to the effect that there is no provision for them to voice out the hardships they encounter at the hands of their ruthless employers. He made his “case” strong by pointing out that:

…call centers are the “culprit” that denies the Filipino youth of their dreams as they are “forced” to enter what they think is the fancy world of call centers.
First of all, any endeavour an individual enters into is a matter of personal choice. There could be mitigating circumstances that these dreams were either not pursued or were hampered. In Third World countries such as ours, money always figures in chasing dreams. Rep. Palatino should take into account that contrary to how he painted call centers, agents often take the call center route so they can earn enough to save up for future plans such as further studies and putting up their own businesses. And who’s to say that that’s the wrong path to take? Why zero in on an industry that helps tens of thousands by giving at the same time that it receives?

…foreign companies gain in savings of between 20-40% in labor costs by exploiting our hapless young people by paying them less than their First World counterparts.
There is always a trade off but these call center companies and their clients abroad are not moochers. The call centers give more than what local companies do and in return their clients get to save on labor costs. What is the moral issue there? The savings the foreign companies garner do not necessarily go straight into their pockets but rather help to keep their companies open so that people in their own countries can continue to have jobs, admittedly diminished in number over there because of the global financial crisis, but that is far better than everyone losing his shirt. Live and let live.

…the high attrition rate in the call center industry is attributable to the poor working conditions coupled with a low sense of control brought on by intense remote monitoring that’s the norm in call centers which contribute to employee stress and burnout; everything is measured in call centers; punitive measures are  just waiting to pounce on agents who don’t meet their targets and there is no adequate avenue for them to appeal the sanctions meted out.
It is so tempting to just say “BOOHOO” here and leave it at that because does it have to be pointed out that in every effective workplace, more or less stringent measures have to be in place to keep employees non-complacent? This is not to say that there is an absence of trust in the call center environment but as in everywhere else, trust but verify, rather than point fingers in the end when things are too far damaged for repairs. Prevention is definitely better than cure.

As for sanctions being hard to appeal, this is misinformed since agents are called into a coaching session whenever they need correcting, after which they’re presented a form to sign by their Quality Assurance officer (and this is face to face no matter how remotely the monitoring is done) to make sure they understand where they’re deemed needing improvement. If a particular agent does not agree, he can refuse to sign the document and the matter can be discussed with higher management.

With regards to the high attrition rate, it’s interesting that this is caused partly by employees moving to other call centers with a better salary and/or benefits package, but also due to them having saved enough to finance their, yes, dreams.

…the graveyard shift and the possibility of having to work on weekends and holidays are difficult and dissatisfying to agents.
Just wondering what Rep. Palatino has to say about those workers in oil rigs in the middle of the sea who don’t see land for months on end. Somebody has to do the job, sir.

…being in a call center deprives individuals of “socialization opportunities” as they become increasingly apathetic and afflicted with “sudden wealth syndrome.”
Rep. Palatino should really make a round of the call centers and speak to agents who he thinks make like rock stars. If he did, he’d realize most call center agents help their families by either becoming independent or by actually supporting their household with their better-than-most salaries. And if he did, he’d see a bunch of people who look as normal as the rest of humanity, with interests and friendships that go beyond the walls of the contact center they work in.

…there is an “alarming” absence of unions.
In extreme cases, the  Trade Union Congress of the Philippines and the Department of Labor and Employment step in like when a large number of workers gets displaced after a contact center ceases operations. Otherwise unions are good only if there is that likelihood of employees being badly treated. With the majority of call centers, that is not the case because the Human Resource Department almost always has an open-door policy and agents are encouraged to air out their grievances. If anything, it is in call centers where one sees management that is particularly accessible and where results are very visible.

…“Unlike our jobs, where we have time to read newspapers or chat with our office mates, the job of a call center agent is one of isolation. The calls just keep coming in, and one has no choice but to pick up the phone.”
Well, we can’t all be politicians. However, do you know that in some centers, they have a person whose main job is to ensure agents are taken care of? At Citigroup, they call him the “Fun Manager” quite reverently. He proposes and champions the budget for  enrichment trainings and incentive trips abroad for top performers, plus occasional dinners and excursions for  all agents lest they “burn out.” Seriously.

And to state the obvious, the term “call center” speaks for itself– agents are aware before they even sent out those resumes that their main task will be to take calls. As for it being a job of isolation, pick a random call center to visit and you won’t see a livelier group of people. Anxiety on the job? Sure, but the camaraderie there far outweighs the jitters. Rep. Palatino further stated that “only a 10-minute per day period is allowed for personal use, such as going to the restroom.” Sir, that is on top of the two 15-minute coffee breaks and the one hour allotted for lunch.

I’d like to end this with an invitation. Visit us, call us. We’d love to tell  anyone who’d care to listen that, for instance, at Open Access Marketing, the salary is good with free top of the line Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) benefits, that OAM has a 98% employee retention rate which means our employees stay, but that more importantly the working conditions are ideal, the big bosses know most everyone by first name, people rise up the ranks from call center to high management, and we get our coffee breaks.