Like Jacey reported in this recent post, the White House announced yesterday that 11 employers have committed to hiring 15,000 military spouses and veterans. The majority of the work they have available are telecommunted call center jobs. That’s great for spouses who just need something, anything, to bring an income but want to or need to work from home because of child care costs. … but maybe not so great for those who are looking for work in the specific field in which they’ve already been trained.
We wanted to know if SpouseBuzz readers would be interested in these jobs or not — so we ran a little poll. If you haven’t taken it yet, you can find it in the right sidebar of this page. Below are the results.
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My thoughts are also that military spouses want jobs that are fulfilling. If you just want "something" it's fine, but what about that thing called our purpose?
I have a call center job and it is because there is nothing else. It’s a paycheck. At this point digging a ditch would be better. Not really a lot of room to move up in the company but it’s a job. I do appreciate that companies are focusing on hiring military and their spouse. It’s hard to complain when you are at least getting paid.
I'd much prefer digging ditches over working at a call center. The pay would be bad at either job but at least digging ditches would mean fresh air, exercise and not dealing with the public all day.
Call centers have a bad rap, and not all are created equal. If the call center is collections and/or cold sell…telemarketing I agree. However there are call centers for almost everything. For instance Avon has a call center in Cincinnati, OH. CVS has several call centers (San Antonio, Pittsburgh, TN, KS). There are call centers that employee pharmacist, nurses (Nurse Hotline), vet (Pet Emergency Hotlines) etc. I have worked in call centers for over 15 years. Some were GREAT some were HORRIBLE. Some had growth options, some didn't. Most had more than one shift. Before writing off all call centers look at those in your area most pay well (in my area they typically hire in at $14-15/hr). In the case of mail order pharmacy, insurance company (Nationwide Columbus, OH), or Avon you are simply assisting with order entry and "taking orders over the phone". The people calling in want your help and are very friendly. If you don't like inside, no you won't like call centers. Having worked both at a pharmacy as a tech and at a call center in the same job…the call center was much easier and I felt less "beat up" at the end of the day. Before you make a judgement…try it. If you don't like it then you haven't really lost anything.
LaDonna, thank you for sharing your experience and honesty. It helps.
If you don't want it then don't apply simple as that. Quit complaining that it is not good enough for you or doesn't have a meaning or purpose. Because there are I am sure 15,000 others that would gladly take the jobs.
Call centers get a bad rap, however, these same call centers have great training programs that will help you gain skills that are necessary not only in the professional world but also in our everyday living. It's frustrating when you go into a business and don't get the customer service that is deserved or when you bump into someone in the real world and realize that they have no people skills. Call centers develop and train employees to be NICE, that's something that's needed desperately here in the US.
Ok.. so the biggest problem I face isn't the fact that a call center job is something that would drive me nuts as much as the fact that the job wouldn't solve my problems. I went to college twice thinking that it would help. I have a masters in public administration and a bachelors degree in business administration. The problem is usually the pay. If I make 1500 a month that is not going to help me out of my debt. Between loans and trying to pay for full time day care and an extra mode of transport if the job is not telecommuting… I might as well work for free. As far is the morale needed in my life to prevent suicidal tendencies… I need a FULFILLING career and that just isn't happening with a call center. So while I appreciate the thought and effort it just doesn't help.
it may be for some, but it never stated that it is for everyone.
I would work at a call center (work from home) so that I could be there for my daughter when she gets out of school. It's convenient, I save on gas and I enjoy helping people. Being nice when customers are being mean is a way to turn the situation into a positive.