There’s a new sick line, for calling in sick apparently! By Alfred Muggins, Call Centre Agent!

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By David Kirtley

Tue, 08 Aug 2023
  • 1325 reads
11 comments
 

6/2/23

There’s a new sick line, for calling in sick apparently. We had a buzz meeting, and the team manager mentioned it. Apparently if we call in sick it must be an hour before we are due to come to work, and it is to be to a designated person in the organization. If we ring at any other time, or closer to the time of work it will not count and presumably we will still have to come in to work, even if we are feeling sick. ‘What if we have an accident on the way to work and we were nearly at the office, and it was within the time hour period?’ I suggested, but wasn’t really given a proper answer.

 

   Anyway we have been sent a gmail message about the new sick line, and we should find the time to read it. I don’t know when I will find the time to read it as we are supposed to be on the phone lines all the time when we are at work, apart from in the two quarter hour break times and the one half hour lunch times. But when are we supposed to eat our sandwiches or go to the toilet?

 

I decided to read it now at the end of the buzz meeting, then I would go for my half hour lunch break, and return refreshed for more calls. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be. I was still on buzz meeting on the timer, I thought, as I prepared to find the posting regarding sickness. But to my surprise a call came in over the headset! It was a call, a customer call. The young team leader/manager must have flipped a switch to put us all back on calls, without consideration of whether I had had my lunch break yet. So I never got to read the memo about sick pay. If I ever was sick I have not got the number to ring, and have not read the new rule yet. It doesn’t look like my manager is ever going to let me actually read it. Eventually after another longwinded call I took my lunch call, but to this day have not found the time or the place to read the memo. Anyway it doesn’t matter now, because I have left the damned workplace!

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Comments

Submitted by David Kirtley on

Just an example of the kind of unsurmountable problems and difficulties faced on a daily basis by call centre staff, the world over I presume. Alfred certainly got himself involved in a number of these circular impossiblilties in which the poor victim was left with only one option - namely to get out of that job while he still had a little bit of sanity left! Could this be why our poor government is finding it so difficult to get all workers back to work after the pandemic? Alfred agrees that workers are not generally being given enough respect (and help?) in the workplace! It doesn't help either when young managers with little life experience or maturity are being drafted in to manage people, some of whom are old enough to be their grandfathers!

Submitted by Sooz006 on

I enjoyed this. Great writing and told just as is.  I did a stint working to the rigid timescales you described as an interviewer at home. I loved it, but towards the end, had hubby's dad living with us. He had dementia and needed constant care, I was juggling him and the very inflexible job--and the bugger wouldn't stay in the air. With Alec's input, it made for some hilarious interviews before I had to give it up. 

Thanks for the memory. 

 

Submitted by David Kirtley on

Thanks for your comments and your shared experiences Sooz. I think a lot of employers probably lose out a lot because of their inflexibility. As Alfred says many of them are probably too tunnel visioned to realise this, or maybe they are just on autopilot, or perhaps they just don't care enough. We are all badly served by them! Who do they think they are? (God??)

Submitted by marandina on

The last line is no surprise. Alfred has limited patience. Onwards to a new job, I imagine.. 

 

Submitted by David Kirtley on

Noting the date, I am reminded that Alfred actually wrote this on the evening of his last day at work in this job! The trouble is employers have the money which we need to live, or to continue in this world so dominated by finance! With his tail between his legs, but proud enough not to accept all the indignities of enslavement, Alfred went back to his previous line of work, which had nearly dried up before he got that job, and at least found there was a bit more work to be had after a few erstwhile colleagues had jumped ship. It has kept him going since but could easily fizzle out again. At least he is not ruled by technology and inexperienced young managers, or put into impossible situations for which he has no back up or solutions! 

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

I hope Alfred has found something a little more humane

 

Submitted by David Kirtley on

Thanks Insert. Alfred has resumed the same job he had been doing previously, which he still kept on at the weekend while at the call centre (suspecting that he might not last in the new job!), but with a few more hours than he had before. But alas poor Alfred has never been able to find or even identify the job of his dreams (apart from being a best selling author and current affairs/historical commentator!). He has failed to succeed, or run out of steam in a small number of professions, and is unfortunately none the wiser as to what he should have been doing all these years!

Submitted by Turlough on

I love this!

I have worked in that place. I remember sometimes having to make the decision toilet or sandwich? There wasn't time for both. I remember wondering when I would find the time to fill in my timesheet.

I got sick of it. There was no one to call to explain my type of sickness so I just left the job to do something else. 

I became self-employed. When I was working for myself I never felt sick, at least not mentally sick.

You have my sympathy.

Turlough

Submitted by David Kirtley on

I am glad you managed to find self employed work which you enjoyed. As Alfred found call centre work can be stifling, although there were other reasons for deciding to leave as well, which I shall reveal in some further posts on this subject. Thanks for sharing your experiences which are very relevant to what I was expressing.

Submitted by Di_Hard on

They seem like the worst jobs possible for mental health. My partner worked for a mobile phone company (won't say which) for a bit - either being ordered to sell stuff to people who didn't want it/couldn't afford it, or being penalised for helping someone who had rung up wanting help, or listening to someone understandably furious because they had fallen victim to an exemplary employee when ringing earlier for help, which they didn't get, and then discovering they had been signed up for a contract they didn't ask for. Very glad Mr Muggins escaped!

 

Submitted by David Kirtley on

Thanks for your comment Di Hard. Your partner seems to have had a particularly difficult job as he was being obliged to sell. At least my (Alfred's!) job was aiming to help or answer callers' questions etc, even if doing a satisfactory job might sometimes not be possible because of having our hands tied by having to do things for them only when they were on the line, which I thought was a bit crazy, as certain things could never be resolved. It could have been a much better job if we had had more support, and training, or could pass difficult issues on to more experienced agents/ or managers. However we didn't have enough of all that so customer service was flawed! (in my opinion!)