I’m putting this in the Pit rather than GD based on the unusual degree of fury I’m experiencing.
{trying to not make this a litigation magnet}
A friend/relative/whatever works for a large cosmetics company. This company is based on direct sales, with “representatives” (i.e. sales people) calling in orders and problems to a “customer service center”.
My friend/relative works the call center. They are timed, taped and micromanaged. Deviate from “the script” by even 1 word and there goes the next raise. Equipment breaks down, turnover runs in the double digits, and call-center people are bumped from cubicle to cubicle.
So the Christmas season was a total c****ter
f**k. Sorta follows with understaffing, high demand, etc. (Keep in mind these are not telemarketers; they are the corporate resouce for the sales reps.)
All call-center employees were handed stacks of postcards and a script. The script expressed deep remorse for poor service and a pledge to do better. Each call-center employee was required to write out the script, in their own handwriting, and then sign them with their names.
Call reps who couldn’t do at least 50 “between calls” could take them home and be paid for 2 hours. Anyone who refused was warned about “not being a team player and it would be noted in their file”.
I’m so heartsick, furious and disgusted by this I’ve lost all balance. Reactions, Dopers? Similar experiences? Advice? Defense?
Supportive cussing?
Could you send an e-mail with the name of this company so that I don’t inadvertently buy something from them, thereby perpetrating their medieval employee treatment?
Or give out a few more hints? Initials? A***? M*** K**?
Actually, I doubt that giving out the company’s name would be grounds for a lawsuit, but then again, I’m not a lawyer.
Thank God I have some job security, and just a few years till retirement. I can’t imagine having to put up with that bull****.
I would heartily advise your friend or relative to find other employment. This economy is very friendly for that sort of quest, and any company that treats people with that sort of disdain is not worth working for.
Those M-F-ing sons of bitches!!! Who the F— do they think they are?
There. How’s that for supportive cussing?
Unfortunately, this sort of thing seems to be a trend in customer service. At least one of the major airlines has a rule for their customer service people- 120 seconds per call. If the customer’s problem can’t be solved in two minutes or less, the rep is supposed to either lie to them or say, “Sorry, I can’t help you” and hang up, or face discliplinary action.
The hand-writing and signing the script thing is just outrageous.
BTW, another corporate trend is to deliberately try to keep employee turnover high, so that they save money by not having employees around long enough to get raises and qualify for benefits. Sounds like what your “friend’s” employer is up to with its draconian policies. What companies fail to see is that it usually takes several months for an employee to become adept enough at a new job to be an asset to the company. New employees are generally not terribly productive until they learn the ropes, so in the long run it costs the company more to constantly be training new kids.
The trouble with Sir Launcelot is by the time he comes riding up, you’ve already married King Arthur.
I for one am still trying to fill in the missing letters in c*****ter!
But I agree with yosemitebabe – didn’t we have a thread or two about what morons people have to hire these days? Your friend can’t be a moron – she should get out and get out quick. It’d be better to flip burgers for minimum than to stay with this kind of soul-destroying self-debasement.
My wife works retail (clothing) and they are absolutely dying for workers. For most people it’s a second job so they’re good about what hours you can and can’t work – what they really want and desperately need are friendly, reliable, intelligent people. No experience necessary.
BTW, Mrs. Pluto asked the manager of the MacDonald’s in the mall how they got their staff – the manager told her they are using prison inmates on work release. Seems like that’s not a tough crowd to compete with for a job!
“pluto … a seriously demented but oddly addictive presence here.” – TVeblen
TVeblen has, perhaps wisely, declined to identify the company involved. Still, the Teeming Thousands are a curious and intelligent bunch (with certain exceptions that I need not specify), and it seems likely that one or more will identify that firm.
If this organization is identified, then, I urge those of the Teeming Thousands who learn that identity to not trade with it. Do not buy its products for yourself, your parents, siblings, and/or friends (yes, I know, it’s a cosmetics outfit; I’m trying to be non-judgmental and non-sexist here).
Whaddaya mean, “But they’re cheaper than the competition?” I don’t care!
Are the managers involved worthless scum? Seems like, on the evidence to date. Are the 'phone people involved spineless wimps? Well, maybe they’re just caught in the money trap (although they probably shouldn’t have gotten into that trap in the first place). But don’t anyone dare to loudly proclaim, “Someone should do something about this – but not me, 'cause I can save two dollars by dealing with 'em”.
Possibly I am spoiled by having enough cash that I can sneer at and boycott whom I please. Possibly my plea will be seen as empty mouthing, as I do not purchase the product in question (I wear no makeup, and my wife wears it about twice a year; I think she’s still got the first tube of lipstick she ever bought). But do not attempt to shift the burden to someone else, and cheerfully go on giving them money under the theory that you’re just a little person who can make no difference.
We now return you to your previously scheduled rants, already in progress.
It is often said that “anything is possible”. In fact, very few things are possible, and most of them have already happened.
c****ter f**k is “cluster fuck”. Imagine a pile of people engaged in sex (not “lovemaking”) with arms and legs and other appendages flailing everywhere.
I usually say “charlie-foxtrot”.
Other useful terms:
SNAFU: Situation normal. All “fouled” up.
FUBAR: Fucked up beyond all recognition.
BOHICA: Bend over. Here it comes again.
You can print the name of the company because no one can actually PROVE you did it because ‘someone’ else might have sneaked in and used your computer with your screen name to post derogatory comments. Plus, any lawyer will find it almost impossible to pry your screen name information out of your ISP without first nearly having to get an act of congress allowing this.
A friend of mine worked for UPS (UNITED PARCEL SERVICE) and while the pay was good, the things they were required to do was ridiculous. Their routes were set up by computer and their trucks loaded by freight handlers in DELIVERY order – but neither the computer nor the loaders ACTUALLY knew the conditions of the route. Then the drivers were required to have it done within certain set times or get bitched at.
No consideration was given for traffic or weather conditions. Those big trucks have no air conditioning and in the summer, the drivers had to carry sweat towels because they got so hot they soaked their uniforms through. PLUS they were taught to dismount from the truck in a CERTAIN way with a CERTAIN hand and if they were caught doing it differently, they were bitched at. That computer manifest pad they carry MUST be operated ONLY with their thumbs and if they get caught doing it differently, they get bitched at. Their supervisors are interested mainly in speed and if they don’t get their routes done in time, then the guy rides with them and harasses the drivers. They also have to get INTO the truck in a CERTAIN way by using a CERTAIN hand only or get bitched at. UPS comes REAL damn close to labor violations and has absolutely no problem with harassing employees to move faster and replacing those who will not with those who will. The pressure is tremendous and the regulations strict, which is probably why they have a pretty high turn over.
Apologies for neglecting my own topic; real life got hairy and then I got distracted with the insanities elsewhere here in our beloved Pit.
So updates…the guilty? Hmmm, lessee:
Ever visit Stratford on Avon?
“DING-dong! _____ calling! Mummy, mummy, it’s the _____ lady!”
Good news, my pal/relative nailed another job. The humiliation and plain illegal scumminess of forcing employees to write personal, signed admissions of fault–even where there hadn’t been any–was the final straw. The money and benefits weren’t bad (not wonderful either) but it just couldn’t balance the degrading treatment.
Anyway, thanks for the supportive cussing. I’m not good at cussing on-line (I can make a Marine blanch in real life, if needed) so your reality check was much appreciated.