I hate my job (rant)

[MR2 Fan]

Sorry, this post is long and technical, I just need to let it out.

I've worked at this job on and off since 2001 (left for 3 years then came crawling back).

I won't name the company, but I do helpdesk work over the phone, supporting devices that are being used by...generally lower educated and middle-eastern/indian "new americans".

We have our main helpdesk, and 2 others in the philippines....we had another one in india which was so horrendous, we dumped them.

Our helpdesk supports 19 different products, about 15 different versions of software, have about 50-60 major brands that we work with...and several other company's devices that interface with ours.

So whenever something goes wrong, there's a MULTITUDE of possible causes from a number of places.

Although the pay is good for being helpdesk without requiring a degree or certification, we're understaffed, and whenever they hire people, most are scared away before even finishing class.

Training for someone to learn everything takes about a year...they're doing different portions of it during that time, but our work is extremely complex. we have a knowledge base available with about 10,000 articles for troubleshooting, and most of the new software that gets developed has severe flaws. QA seems to be useless or non-existent, so we try to patch things or pull logs to send back to the programmers all the time.

Things have been exponentially worse in the past few years...the troubleshooting we do is now a lot more complicated, and management is putting us under a microscope. Our calls can average from 10 minutes to 2 hours. We have about 40 agents working at one time in our office...we get two 15 minute breaks and 1 hour lunch in an 8 hour shift....HOWEVER, there are tags that must be available. There's 2 break tags and 5 lunch tags...so only those people can be on there during those times.

We have to inform supervisors when we need a restroom break. We have scheduled lunches, but those are subject to change at any time basically. Today I was trying to finish a call and my supervisor gave me an "escalation" to work on, at the same time my lunch was scheduled...and he wanted me to do it before my lunch. There's no reason why any of the other agents NOT scheduled at the same time couldn't do it.

We are also asked constantly to work overtime, or stay past our shifts, come in early, or work on our days off...and they get mad at us if we don't.

Recently we've all been set up with instant messenger services and group chat rooms. This is where the supervisors can ask us why we're still on a call after every 15 minutes and which higher level person is "working with us" to solve the issue, because apparently in addition to needing to tell them when we have to pee, we have to have someone hold our hand as well, to troubleshoot. So the chat will be showing all day "MIKE WHO ARE YOU WORKING WITH?" "BOB WHO ARE YOU WORKING WITH?" and that's all we see.

Oh, and our database system, we have to fill out about a dozen fields about what the issue is, then 5 parts of notes divided into sections, and we have 45 whole seconds to finish this after each call, THEN send it to the proper queue or closing it, before the next call comes in. We can choose to go into a different status to finish our notes, but the supervisors have found a way to force us to take the next call anyway.

It's literally becoming a hostile work environment. We haven't had any kind of staff meeting in over 4 years, so we never have any kind of group "say" in what should be improved or what our morale is.

I've also been harassed via text message when I was too sick to come in to work.

Anyway, I'm seriously considering moving to Japan and get as far away from this place as possible (it sounds silly, I know)

[G'day Mate]

Sounds pretty badly micro-managed - I'm guessing the supervisors are on a power trip and aren't great leaders. Could you be a supervisor?

[MR2 Fan]

Sounds pretty badly micro-managed - I'm guessing the supervisors are on a power trip and aren't great leaders. Could you be a supervisor?

I applied, before I even had any questions or an interview, they said they found someone else...which basically just meant they re-shuffled the existing supervisors...kinda like re-arranging the deck chairs on the titanic

[Leon]

Get the hell out.

Life is too short

[Tom Servo]

I hate to say it, but this sounds a lot like every help desk I've ever worked with. Thankfully not on, but I'm usually friends with the guys on help desk and none of these stories sound new :/

[MR2 Fan]

I hate to say it, but this sounds a lot like every help desk I've ever worked with. Thankfully not on, but I'm usually friends with the guys on help desk and none of these stories sound new :/

Yeah, I guess it seems worse because it didn't used to be like this...at all.

[Tom Servo]

We had a similar thing happen at Stamps when I used to work there. We had the slogan "world class support" and people were treated really well. Then the money got tighter and a new VP of Operations came in. That's when the micromanaging, the average call time goals, etc etc all showed up.

The only company I know of that still treats their help desk/support people well is Zappos.

[Godson]

As Leon said, run away.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajMpfPYlHi4

[Yw-slayer]

If it's that bad, then yeah, move on. Not necessarily to Japan!

[Leon]

don't move to another call centre that's for certain

[Rare White Ape]

I honestly couldn't think of a worse job to do.

Maybe cold calling sales leads. Same-ish vocation really.

Move to Cali and work in film... Even at the bottom it's pretty sweet.

[Yw-slayer]

Yeah, I have to say that I am not very good at treating cold-callers very well.

Hmm, perhaps that should go in another thread.

[Cam]

Quit.

[George]

Get the hell out.

Life is too short

Sometimes you just have to go find another job. This sounds like the time. Just do it.

(and I've done it several times so I'm not just whistling Dixie here)

[G'day Mate]

It's easy for everyone else to tell you to quit.

Quit.

There, that was easy

[tigeraid]

I've spoken here at length about my horrific 5+ year ordeal in call centres in the past.

Quit. I did, despite being terrified that I wouldn't find another job. Nothing is worth working in a place where you are a number and not a person, and where hard work is meaningless and gets you nowhere. It will also cost you your fitness, affect your throat, affect your hearing, and cause depression.

Leave.

[MR2 Fan]

Well beyond the current situation, I've been thinking of moving to asia for several years, and Japan is my #1 place that I want to go to.

I have an opportunity to move there soon and I'm definitely planning to take it.

[Crazed_Insanity]

Good luck dude!

Moral of the story isn't just to quit, but paraphrasing what Jim Carey said, follow your dream and your heart man!

[Godson]

I walked away from a stable job back in 2010/11, got into nursing school, and couldn't be happier. I am in a much better place but it took some serious work. Best of luck.

[Alan P]

All the staff need to present a united front and go to a manager that listens and tell them what's happening. Request a staff meeting with one of the higher ups. A majority of staff need to be in on this, especially the senior/experienced staff such as yourself. Morale sounds like it's in the toilet. Happy staff=happy customers! My place of work has realised this and has majorly cut back on the ACW and AHT requirements.

[Leon]

Been in places where morale was in the dunny.

Management didn't care, because management above them had said "it shall be done", so 50% of the experienced staff left. Management in the highest level cared not a jot.

[MR2 Fan]

All the staff need to present a united front and go to a manager that listens and tell them what's happening. Request a staff meeting with one of the higher ups. A majority of staff need to be in on this, especially the senior/experienced staff such as yourself. Morale sounds like it's in the toilet. Happy staff=happy customers! My place of work has realised this and has majorly cut back on the ACW and AHT requirements.

Yeah, I've been considering doing that...trying to get everyone on the same "page". I also started a private FB group for us to meet and discuss things.

[Drachen596]

call center jobs are the worst.. honestly my call center jobs sucked even worse than my fast food job. there's something about the person on the other end of the phone knowing they will likely never meet you that results in them thinking its fine to be a complete dick over the dumbest things. like a penny worth of tax on a bill.

also i can almost guarantee that if you have a fb page about it then your management team knows about it. someone is always a butt kisser.

[tigeraid]

Yeah, I've been considering doing that...trying to get everyone on the same "page". I also started a private FB group for us to meet and discuss things.

It never works. Teletech had an actual SITE rather than a FB page... "teletechsucks.com." Doesn't exist anymore, probably due to a libel suit or something. Complaint Websites are shockingly common when it comes to callcentre jobs. Nothing ever gets anywhere, no changes are ever made, and if you breathe a word about a union, you're in some serious shit. In the end, the call centre cares about one thing: meeting the metrics of the client.

[Kchrpm]

One of you fuckers needs to up and move to Austin so I don't have to pay for a hotel room. So I say quit and move to Austin!

[Cam]

I worked in a small call centre for a while. Yeah, I didn't like the job, even though it was just surveys and inbound calls, not sales. However it was a nice place to work and people that worked there seemed to care about what they were doing. Regardless, I got out of there as soon as I got something better--starting my career in animation! :)

[thesameguy]

In the end, the call centre cares about one thing: meeting the metrics of the client.

I've been the client, and that sure seems accurate from my POV.

[Alan P]

I do work directly for the company in question though so it's slightly better than working as an outsource agent.

[MR2 Fan]

It never works. Teletech had an actual SITE rather than a FB page... "teletechsucks.com." Doesn't exist anymore, probably due to a libel suit or something. Complaint Websites are shockingly common when it comes to callcentre jobs. Nothing ever gets anywhere, no changes are ever made, and if you breathe a word about a union, you're in some serious shit. In the end, the call centre cares about one thing: meeting the metrics of the client.

It isn't a complaint site...it's a private page where I invite certain trusted co-workers to a place where we can discuss the state of work and if/how we can ask for changes.

[IMOA]

Well beyond the current situation, I've been thinking of moving to asia for several years, and Japan is my #1 place that I want to go to.

I have an opportunity to move there soon and I'm definitely planning to take it.

Just understand that the sorts of things that you're complaining about are pretty common in Japan. Only difference is that staff are expected to work longer hours and give over a lot of their own ime to the company this is in excess of the aforementioned longer hours)


Yeah, I've been considering doing that...trying to get everyone on the same "page". I also started a private FB group for us to meet and discuss things.

Just remember that no page is as private as you think and not only would this get you in serious shit with your existing employer but it would put a 'do not hire' stamp on you for any future employer.

[JSGeneral]

I've been following this thread and just checking in to see if you quit yet.

Here's a quick clip you might of seen, but it's relevant.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajMpfPYlHi4

[Fiat500]

On a lighter note, 27 People Who Have Better Job Titles Than You (http://www.buzzfeed.com/patricksmith/27-people-who-have-better-job-titles-than-you)

I'm surprised they didn't include this one:

http://www.timemachinego.com/linkmachinego/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/alan-moore-greatest-living-englishman2.jpg

but then, Alan Moore is already in there.

[MR2 Fan]

Just understand that the sorts of things that you're complaining about are pretty common in Japan. Only difference is that staff are expected to work longer hours and give over a lot of their own ime to the company this is in excess of the aforementioned longer hours)

Yes, I'm familiar with that in certain professions, but I'm also in touch with a lot of other people who are already in that profession there (teaching english)...I know what's going on.




Just remember that no page is as private as you think and not only would this get you in serious shit with your existing employer but it would put a 'do not hire' stamp on you for any future employer.

I'm not that paranoid yet.

[thesameguy]

Just remember that no page is as private as you think and not only would this get you in serious shit with your existing employer but it would put a 'do not hire' stamp on you for any future employer.

That would actually be interesting to test in the US, especially in states with strong labor laws. That scenario would be very unlikely to play out in California, for example. It'd probably be grounds for a fun lawsuit.

[IMOA]

That would actually be interesting to test in the US, especially in states with strong labor laws. That scenario would be very unlikely to play out in California, for example. It'd probably be grounds for a fun lawsuit.

Given the pretty weak labor laws in the US (even states which are perceived to have strong labor laws are quite weak compared to international standards) that would surprise me. I've certainly given staff in aus a bollocking for airing dirty laundry and not hired staff in both aus and japan for bad mouthing previous employers and I've been well within the law in doing so.

[thesameguy]

Well, be surprised. I can tell you factually that would be grounds for a lawsuit in California, and I can tell you factually at least one court would side with the plaintiff. You can fire someone for no reason at all, but firing someone and citing extra-curricular activities is an uphill battle - you have to prove that the activity directly and adversely affected your business (eg, a teacher who is a part-time stripper or a spokesperson who is a part-time dog fighter). If an employer fired someone for "no reason," then represented to a future prospective employer the reason for termination was that extra-curricular activity or even mentioned that activity in such a way that it could have been interpreted as a reason for termination, you would be inviting a lawsuit. Most intelligent hiring managers wouldn't open the door to such a thing by mentioning such things - most intelligent hiring managers stick to bare minimum employment info. I've never been in any HR training, insourced or outsourced, where the speaker recommends doing anything but just that.

[TheBenior]

MR2 Fan is in an anti-union state, not California, so I doubt there's as many worker protections.

[IMOA]

Well, be surprised. I can tell you factually that would be grounds for a lawsuit in California, and I can tell you factually at least one court would side with the plaintiff. You can fire someone for no reason at all, but firing someone and citing extra-curricular activities is an uphill battle - you have to prove that the activity directly and adversely affected your business (eg, a teacher who is a part-time stripper or a spokesperson who is a part-time dog fighter). If an employer fired someone for "no reason," then represented to a future prospective employer the reason for termination was that extra-curricular activity or even mentioned that activity in such a way that it could have been interpreted as a reason for termination, you would be inviting a lawsuit. Most intelligent hiring managers wouldn't open the door to such a thing by mentioning such things - most intelligent hiring managers stick to bare minimum employment info. I've never been in any HR training, insourced or outsourced, where the speaker recommends doing anything but just that.

If you read what I wrote and didn't imagine a bunch of things I didn't say I reckon you'd be less surprised.

[thesameguy]

You said a lawsuit would surprise you. I made you aware it has happened (multiple times), and you should go ahead and be surprised.

[IMOA]

I never mentioned firing anyone nor did I mention anything about a previous employer telling a prospective employer anything so I'm not sure what lawsuits to do with those things have to do with what I said.

[speedpimp]

After working six days a week and sixty plus hours a week for the last couple of months I had a mini meltdown on Weds. I had worked ten hours and my truck wasn't even half empty at 4 P.M. and I knew that most of the places I had left to deliver would be closing in the next hour. So I drove back to work, unloaded my truck and told the night manager that I wouldn't be in on Thursday. I took yesterday off to get my shit straight. Not having to run around like a mad man felt good for once. I also took the time to fill out some apps at a couple of different places. I was actually smiling when I went into work this morning because the day off felt so fucking good. A co-worker walked up to me and asked if I had a gun on me. I told him "no" and that even if I did I wouldn't be wasting bullets on his ass. We both let out a macabre laugh and went on about our days. I was happy that I was done by noon. A little while later while I was bullshitting around the house I got a call for an interview from one of the places I applied to yesterday. So I have an interview tomorrow after I finish my route.