8 July 2017
I worked at a jobcentre – I'm so sorry for
the way we treated you
[…]
My bosses said I should be able to complete the
interview in 25 minutes, but I had to collect lots of information from
customers. Many of the people I saw only started to learn English and we also
had to collect sensitive information, like the dates marriages ended or
partners died. I’m sorry
that I politely moved you along to the next question while you cried, but I
could see my manager listening to our conversation, while checking against the
diary to see how we were doing for time.
[…]
When you book an appointment through our outsourced
and overworked call centre, you’re supposed to get a letter in the post
confirming it. The letter says that if you need an interpreter, we will provide
one. I’m sorry that I used a card with my questions in different languages
rather than an over-the-phone interpreter. If we use the service too much,
senior managers challenge our use. They accuse us of being carefree with public
money and make it clear that it won’t happen on their watch. […]
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