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TOPIC: Call centres warned on staff health

Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 09:53 #1

  • Abs
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news.uk.msn.com/call-centres-warned-on-staff-health-1
One in four call centre workers has had access to a toilet break restricted, highlighting a "significant risk" to their health and safety, according to a new report.

A study of almost 800 workers by Unison found they often could not take measures to protect their health and wellbeing because of pressurised, target-driven and closely monitored working arrangements.

Almost seven out of 10 of those surveyed said they suffered eye strain and over half had problems with their hearing and voices.

More than 80% said their work caused them to feel stressed, sometimes impacting on their personal lives.

Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said: "The alarming number of health problems highlighted by the survey shows why health and safety matters, and the folly of this Government's constant attacks on health and safety and the cuts in inspections in workplaces such as call centres.

"That this survey has shown more than a quarter have had their basic right to a toilet break restricted or monitored is bad enough, but the physical toll on call workers' eyes, ears and voices - the tools of their trade - is something that managers and organisations cannot ignore.

"Workers rightly expect their employers to have a duty of care not only to their physical health, but also to their mental wellbeing, and the findings of this survey - that eight in 10 are experiencing stress, a quarter of them to a damaging degree - must be addressed urgently.

"The results of this survey should be a wake-up call for call centre employers, and Unison demands that they act now before the situation gets even worse."

Working in a call-centre sucks arse; this we probably all knew already. Small wonder they all eventually fek orf overseas where they can easier get away with treating people like cattle. :mad:
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Last Edit: 18 Jun 2012 09:53 by Abs.
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 10:03 #2

  • thoreau
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funny you mention cattle abs - that is exactly how I think of call centre staff and others forced to stay indoors with little ventilation or real light and restricted movement - would not surprise me if they started putting people on iv drips so they didnt have to get up for lunch or drinks and had them sit on commodes or have catheters installed to prevent loo breaks.

Human welfare is treated with as much disdain as animal welfare by those who are only interested in money - we are a commodity - fecking sad state of affairs.
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 10:11 #3

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Well, in a strange round-about sort of way with no malice or spiteful glee intended: Good!

Because, perhaps, it will take this kind of treatment (and worse) to wake people up to what they are doing with their lives and how they are being treated for money and their masters' profit.
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 10:58 #4

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All sorts of work nowadays is destructive to mental health quite simply because it makes no sense to do it ;)

People sub-consciously know its f*cked up so they end up becoming f*cked up.

Its the way the world works unfortunately. There's too much distraction for people to focus on what really matters imho so I don't see people 'waking up' to whats going on short of some ridiculously severe event such as total global economic collapse and a protracted collapse at that.
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 11:20 #5

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I've never worked in a call-centre (although I've worked on a switchboard), but my OH has and from his experiences I can say that it's one of the most soul-destroying jobs you can do. :(

Mandy
All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well. - Mother Julian of Norwich
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 13:52 #6

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I was recently hired as a call centre supervisor, :chuckle: I'm just waiting for the place to get up and running. I have worked the phones, been in IT, mentored, and supervised at call centre to the tune of @ 4 years in total. It is a mind numbing job when you are on the phones, some people are a bundle of nerves when they start, and at the end of the day they are like basketcases. Some just take it as it is and thrive. It's really not for everyone.

It doesn't bother me to work there, it's a new place, and it's easy work. It's a 10 minute walk/2 minute bike ride, I get full benefits after 90 days (Health, Dental, Life Insurance), I don't work weekends, and it's a salaried position. This is an inbound call centre, that's all I've worked at. The building is nice, with big windows, air conditioning, a nice cafeteria. My previous was working for Dell computers, and now it's another "major computer manufacturer" so it's not so bad. My background is in computer manitenance, IT and assembly. I couldn't call someone and sell things..... :O No way.

All jobs are a little soul destroying if you work for someone else, and are unhappy in the job. I don't care enough about it, I'm not a "company man". I show up, work, leave. I'm courteous to people I work with. It keeps food on the table and all of those things. Social Services pays about 1/3 of what I make working.... so that's not really an option. I'll do this for as long as I can stick it out, then I'll take a break from working for a couple of months, and get something else. It's a nice cycle.
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 16:18 #7

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andyh wrote:
All sorts of work nowadays is destructive to mental health quite simply because it makes no sense to do it ;)

People sub-consciously know its f*cked up so they end up becoming f*cked up.

Its the way the world works unfortunately. There's too much distraction for people to focus on what really matters imho so I don't see people 'waking up' to whats going on short of some ridiculously severe event such as total global economic collapse and a protracted collapse at that.

It may come as a shock to some of you that I spent MANY years in a call-centre. :rl: :woo: :uzi:
What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: Our life is the creation of our mind.

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Last Edit: 18 Jun 2012 16:18 by Abs.
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 16:21 #8

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ronisron wrote:

All jobs are a little soul destroying if you work for someone else, and are unhappy in the job.

Fair point, Ron. I just reeeeaaaalllly resent having to ask if I can go to the toilet. Fuck sake. :roll:
What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: Our life is the creation of our mind.

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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 17:14 #9

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Ab Origine wrote:
andyh wrote:
All sorts of work nowadays is destructive to mental health quite simply because it makes no sense to do it ;)

People sub-consciously know its f*cked up so they end up becoming f*cked up.

Its the way the world works unfortunately. There's too much distraction for people to focus on what really matters imho so I don't see people 'waking up' to whats going on short of some ridiculously severe event such as total global economic collapse and a protracted collapse at that.

It may come as a shock to some of you that I spent MANY years in a call-centre. :rl: :woo: :uzi:

I've done it too but not for long, short term contract...thank God :)

Some people are capable of dealing with it I suppose, thicker skin and all that. In your case I would imagine you have developed quite a thick skin perhaps anyway ;)
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 17:18 #10

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Ab Origine wrote:
ronisron wrote:

All jobs are a little soul destroying if you work for someone else, and are unhappy in the job.

Fair point, Ron. I just reeeeaaaalllly resent having to ask if I can go to the toilet. Fuck sake. :roll:

At the centre I used to work at, they had something called "Personal" code which you punched into your phone to indicate "washroom". If you took too many, someone like me would be sent to ask if something was wrong, then I would report back to the call monitors and say that the person was not feeling well, bad headache, stomach pains. If they took long "personal" breaks all the time as a regular course of their day, someone would probably warn them for it. A good way around that would be to ask a customer if they would "please hold for a moment whie I check my sources..." and take time away from the phone, or walk, get a coffee, talk to someone about so and so.... There's ways around everything.

But having to ask when, being told when they could take a bathroom beak, or refused? Not where I worked, and it better not be like it at the new job either. These are adults we're talking about, who understand their own "biology" pretty well. Last time I worked at a call centre was 2000-2004. Maybe things are different now. Once again, there are always "work-arounds".
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 18:08 #11

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I worked at a call centre for nearly a year and tbh it was easy work for easy money. The pay and holiday entitlement was pretty decent considering the fact that the job was shite. The managers knew the work sucked and were very nice and accommodating with holidays, time off for the dentist etc. The company also provided opticians vouchers.

You could go to the loo or get a drink whenever you wanted and nearly all of the people who worked there were really nice. Tbh sometimes I feel a bit gutted that I left. It was a case of the grass being greener. It was boring work, but you got treated well for being a desk slave! :D

I left, got a telecommuting job as a webmaster and moved to the other side of the country :conf:
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Re: Call centres warned on staff health 18 Jun 2012 18:42 #12

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Where I was wasn't as bad as it could have been, I suppose, though I've heard some real horror stories. It's no exaggeration that I had to ask to go to the toilet, too.

As has been said already, it's just a completely unnatural state for a human to be sat like that for eight hours a day, although I suppose a lot of us do that on here! :hahano:
What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: Our life is the creation of our mind.

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