Call Center Employees in India Essay

Rage is a hot topic of discussion in the current world and traffic rage is becoming a common known and accepted these days. With more and more people hitting the roads, traffic snarls cause people to lose their tempers which results in anger and rage among commuters. However, there is one more area which is ever increasing in rage, call center rage, especially so, in Indian call centers. Call center employees have to face the wrath of their clients from the West and face the risk of verbal abuse, which is many a time, racist. According to a study, “nine out of 10 people’s experience of call centers had left them angry and confused” (Tweedie, 2008).

There is an ever increasing demand for call center employees in India with outsourcing becoming a flourishing industry and more centers opening. The BPO or call center industry does not have a very good reputation, with employees having to face innumerable problems daily. A common problem faced by Indian employees from their overseas customers is the step motherly treatment which they receive from the other end of the phone. This bad treatment or harassment can be highly demeaning for the employees who have to bear this, directly having an effect on staff turnover “with some companies battling an annual departure rate of 60-70 per cent” (Amelia Gentleman).

The primary cause for this verbal assault at the hands of the Western clients is the rage over the fact that Indians have taken the jobs which were “formerly carried out in Europe or the U.S.” (Zubair Ahmed, 2006). According to Shyamanuja Das, the editor of ‘Global Outsourcing magazine’ a study revealed that “hostility from clients” was a primary factor, prompting employees to quit their jobs (Amelia Gentleman). The problem is not showing any signs of receding due to the growing “anger in the West over job losses and fear about offshoring” (Amelia Gentleman).

Many Western clients target Indian call center executives and degrade them, which results in loss of confidence and consequent job losses. Racism is a common problem among call canter employees from their western clientele, who sometimes exceed their limits, indulging in racist and sometimes sexual assaults. This hurts the ego and self respect of the young and not so experienced staff members, many of whom are college students. They do not have the expertise to deal with such situations and if they retaliate, could face the risk of losing their jobs. This abuse and hatred is a core factor in “driving increasing numbers of Indian call centre workers from their jobs” especially in cases where girls are harassed and sometimes even “reduced to tears” (Amelia Gentleman).

While there are many employees who have suffered abuse and racist comments from their western clients, there are many who admire India and respect its citizens. Moreover, companies are now drafting new laws and techniques to deal with these problems. Psychiatric help is provided to the employees in many call centers which enables them to understand and deal with such issues in a more positive manner. Nevertheless, abuse in any form at the workplace is an offense and laws must be drafted to safe call center employees from this kind of verbal and racist abuse.

References

Ahmed Zubair, (2006). Abuse rattles Indian call centre staff. BBC NEWS: Web.

Gentleman Amelia. Indian call staff quit over abuse on the line. New Delhi.

Tweedie Katrina, 2008. New Guide Tackles Abuse Suffered By Call-Centre Staff. Web.