'Satanic mills' see the light

Some call centres are nurturing their staff instead of enslaving them

Call centre work is now the fastest-growing job category in the UK. Yet, according to a new report by Income Data Services (IDS), nearly a third continue to have problems in recruiting staff and almost half experience difficulties in retaining them.

Call centre work is now the fastest-growing job category in the UK. Yet, according to a new report by Income Data Services (IDS), nearly a third continue to have problems in recruiting staff and almost half experience difficulties in retaining them.

Little wonder, says a spokesperson for UNIFI, the finance workers' union, who claims: "Some call centres still log visits to the toilet. And a big emphasis is put on teamwork to make sure nobody breaks ranks and starts complaining."

Meanwhile, employees continue to complain publicly of "oppressive 19th century-style managers", "stress and excessive pressure" and "insufficient staffing". In fact, claims TUC General Secretary John Monks, there is a danger of call centres becoming "the satanic mills of the 21st century". So what are employers doing to rid themselves of their sweatshop image, and what hope do they have of succeeding?

At one time, the Government's plan to make internet access universal by 2005 was expected to reduce the need for call centre staff. The public would simply book holidays, order clothes or question a gas bill on the net or, with the growth in interactive TV, on the television. "But the reality is quite the opposite," says John Zefafa, a spokesperson for ONdigital, which recently opened a new centre in Wales employing 1,500 people. "Our experience is that people like human contact to guide them through services."

The move towards a 24-hour society is also expected to expand the need for call centres. The ability to arrange a holiday, book a restaurant or transfer bank funds at any time you want will only encourage more queries.

This, says IDS, makes the need to improve conditions for employees in call centres all the more urgent - a claim backed by the customer-service management provider Ventura, which is currently working out ways to make staff feel valued. "We take a holistic approach. We advocate direct access between staff and directors; we have right-to-reply sessions; and we encourage staff to come up with their own solutions for improvements," explains Kate Marsden, human resources director at Ventura. The company also offers "optional facilities" during breaks such as a gym and TV room. These, says Ms Marsden, "help in keeping staff turnover low".

Standard Life Bank is another company at the forefront of ensuring that call centres work efficiently. It has, for instance, introduced psychometric testing as a tool in identifying the type of people who suit this environment. In addition, the bank has found that training and development - an aspect of employment often ignored in call centres - is a crucial way of maintaining staff motivation. "We issue staff with a self-development folder that identifies certain opportunities and the skills needed to achieve them," says Neil Ross, managing director. "We then provide the ongoing training they'll require."

Meanwhile, the bank's "quiet centre" is packed with PCs that allow workers to train themselves. "Staff can use software to develop skills in anything from languages to accountancy," says Mr Ross.

Janette Manday, editor of Call Centre Focus magazine, claims the trend towards multi-skilling is set to be one of the main benefits for call centre workers. "An increasing number of centres now have learning rooms where staff can go of their own volition. This not only makes them feel recognised but means they can handle a wider variety of calls." She suggests that rather than de-skilling staff, call centres can offer a stimulating career.

But Clare Moody, a spokesperson for UNIFI, points out: "This doesn't stop employers from using their staff as telephone fodder." UNIFI was one of the main participants in "The Trade Unions and Call Centre Survey", released earlier this year which found that the combination of targets, surveillance and difficult customers was the main cause of stress in call centres. "Staff are expected to provide a service and respond to customer needs," says Ms Moody. "When they are set target sales and time limitations, that works against providing this service, which in turn causes stress. That can't be covered up with promises of training, which is a completely separate issue."

Travel agent Thomas Cook claims it has found the solution to recruitment and retention problems at its call centre in Falkirk. "Our main aim was to create a holiday-type environment", says Phil Ginn, head of CALL Centre Operations, who explains that staff walk in through the company's "sensorama" corridor every morning to be greeted with the sound of waves crashing, bright, changing colours and the smell of coconut oil.

He adds: "We still want staff to achieve targets but hopefully the environment helps to eradicate the pressures to some extent." Thomas Cook also offers training, including sending employees to holiday resorts to gain hands-on experience of the products they are selling.

Theme days are the main innovation at the call centre of telecommunications company Orange. "We have had pirate days and beach days, says spokesperson Ben Richardson. "These have been implemented as a means of breaking up the week with a bit of fun." Orange has even taken advice from a Feng Shui expert in the design of its call centres to ensure the flow of positive energy.

Derek Hodgson, General Secretary of the Communications Workers Union, is impressed with these measures. But, he adds, they are not enough. "There is a need for a set of enforceable standards. Just as the Industrial Revolution spawned the Factory Acts, so must the technological industrial revolution give birth to new standards and safeguards for workers in the call centre industry."

He says a health representative recently wrote to him explaining that he had been sus- pended for using the company's phone to contact the health and safety executive about a gas problem. Likewise, a woman who wanted to start three-quarters of an hour late had to produce a letter from her child's school before the "concession" was considered.

"These are the conditions endured by many of the 400,000 people who currently work in call centres - more than the combined number working in coal mining, steel and vehicle production. We cannot be satisfied with ensuring that one company, or even four or five, provide top class call-centre jobs. We need minimum standards to ensure that working people throughout the UK benefit from quality employment."