Sancho posted:I saw far too many people stuck at call centers in middle management because of family obligations. Get out of call centers while you're still young and mobile! If you get internal company newsletters and they have a '5 year, 10 year, 20 yr, etc ' employee section, look at their eyes. They're dead inside. I saw an anniversary for someone celebrating their 47th year with the company. I looked them up on the employee database and they're basically doing my job. I'm sure they're crosstrained 8 different ways from sunday, but they're still frontline phones.
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Apr 6, 2013 19:00
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RN029-ARIN posted:Lawl, TNI. I'm glad you got out of that shithole. The only way I got through that even for a few months was to be blazed halfway out of my mind all shift (I was WFM). I started smoking in training when they were teaching us how to use ipconfig (if you have to be taught that, you're doing what in ISP support?) and I didn't work an hour sober until I quit. At least it wasn't too bad. You went through your thing and then dispatched, and there was nothing along the lines of having to personally tackle a weird issue. drat tedious though. Yeah. They owe me backpay because of their stupid logging software. I survived a year and a half. Hilariously, one of the complaints as I left was that people were coming in blazed/drunk/hungover. A friend who still works there mentioned that they were, if not had already, going to institute random drug testing because CenturyLink requested it. Just ugh. Never. Again. And I got stuck next to Pedobear a lot of the time. That was just awful.
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Apr 7, 2013 08:38
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Sancho posted:I saw far too many people stuck at call centers in middle management because of family obligations. Get out of call centers while you're still young and mobile! If you get internal company newsletters and they have a '5 year, 10 year, 20 yr, etc ' employee section, look at their eyes. They're dead inside. That happened to me, someone joked it was only a few months until my 5 year anniversary. I wanted to puke, and left within the next two months.
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Apr 7, 2013 14:57
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Loving Life Partner posted:I saw an anniversary for someone celebrating their 47th year with the company. I looked them up on the employee database and they're basically doing my job. I'm sure they're crosstrained 8 different ways from sunday, but they're still frontline phones. I have a woman on my team at work that's been there for 30 years. She's done back office operations, worked face to face with people in branches, even managed a team for a while. Now, she's on the bank line, which is considered the absolute bottom of the company. BUT it's also generally the lowest in tems of stress, doesn't require you to have a bunch of licenses to keep up to date, and I'm sure she still gets paid 50% more than i do to do the same job. At her age, i doubt i'd bother doing much more either.
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Apr 7, 2013 17:04
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Sancho posted:I saw far too many people stuck at call centers in middle management because of family obligations. Get out of call centers while you're still young and mobile! If you get internal company newsletters and they have a '5 year, 10 year, 20 yr, etc ' employee section, look at their eyes. They're dead inside. I have to finish my A+ so I can even get a goddamn callback on a resume. I know the lack of education I have is what is holding me back professionally now, but it's hard to get any of that working full time and driving an hour to work.
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Apr 8, 2013 22:50
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Gothmog1065 posted:I have to finish my A+ so I can even get a goddamn callback on a resume. I know the lack of education I have is what is holding me back professionally now, but it's hard to get any of that working full time and driving an hour to work. It's all good, call centers are good for getting other jobs. You usually do a lot of bullshit that looks good on resumes and good interview practice when you apply for internal positions. Just milk it for all you can. They usually pay you just enough to make it a pain to leave =/.
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Apr 9, 2013 05:06
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Sancho posted:It's all good, call centers are good for getting other jobs. You usually do a lot of bullshit that looks good on resumes and good interview practice when you apply for internal positions. Just milk it for all you can. They usually pay you just enough to make it a pain to leave =/. Yeah, I'm making really good money for around here, which makes it difficult to take a 3 or 4 dollar paycut for some jobs, but I know it'd be better in the end. Then again, someone hosed our phone service up badly. 3 days and the phone engineers still haven't fixed it. Some people still can't get calls. It makes me wonder who the gently caress's in charge, and how many people are going to be fired over this.
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Apr 9, 2013 15:37
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They did a pilot here for some new kind of customer routing voodoo algorithm and there were people in it who would come to work for a full 10 hour shift and not get a call because the pilot was turned off for the day and nobody was aware. Good times.
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Apr 9, 2013 17:54
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Loving Life Partner posted:They did a pilot here for some new kind of customer routing voodoo algorithm and there were people in it who would come to work for a full 10 hour shift and not get a call because the pilot was turned off for the day and nobody was aware. We had that happen but it was really dumb. Experienced employees were getting calls out the rear end and newbies were sitting for hours on end doing nothing. I think they screwed something up there...
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Apr 9, 2013 18:22
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I hate this job and I hate corporate culture, but I'm pretty sure I'd alert someone to the fact that I wasn't getting calls after probably like, 20 minutes or so in queue. Apparently tons of people didn't just like V  V
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Apr 9, 2013 18:23
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Loving Life Partner posted:I hate this job and I hate corporate culture, but I'm pretty sure I'd alert someone to the fact that I wasn't getting calls after probably like, 20 minutes or so in queue. I'd much rather get paid to not take calls. That said my work isn't clean desk policy. I can write or draw or read or play on my phone. Just like I am now.
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Apr 9, 2013 18:39
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I remember my call center experience about 11 years ago. I started work in February 2002 for a management company that handled Comcast Internet calls. About a month later I was diagnosed with a tumor inside of my left femur. I worked until the surgery on April 9th, 2002. Three days later in my hospital bed, they called to tell me they didn't need my services anymore. So I took diability for a few months while I healed up to be able to drive and walk. May of 2002 they called back asking me to be a team lead for their brand new Gateway Computer program. Unbeknownst to them, I had already been accepted to attend college seven hours away in September. I took the job, and managed to take the 2-3 weeks vacation right away, not to mention taking any sort of time allowed (I did have a distant aunt of mine pass, but I decided to take the full company alloted paid time) This is leading up to my favorite way of quitting a job I ever did: The program manager was talking to me at the cubicle one day just droning on about absolutely nothing. This guy was a typical spineless coward. Anyways, I got up, shook his hand and said Hey xxxx, thanks for everything. And then I just walked out. About 5 minutes later I'm heading down the highway and I get a call from a cubicle neighbor. He's wondering where I am because the program manager still hasn't left my cubicle and is waiting for me to come back or something.
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Apr 9, 2013 19:21
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cuntvalet posted:I'd much rather get paid to not take calls. That said my work isn't clean desk policy. I can write or draw or read or play on my phone. Just like I am now. Same here. If it was a "no distractions" type environment, I probably wouldn't have lasted a month. I've managed to sneak small programs onto my PC as well, like Destkop Dungeons and TOME and poo poo. I think if I got a gaming laptop and could faceroll WoW dailies, it'd be a pretty okay job.
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Apr 9, 2013 19:26
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Loving Life Partner posted:Same here. If it was a "no distractions" type environment, I probably wouldn't have lasted a month. I've managed to sneak small programs onto my PC as well, like Destkop Dungeons and TOME and poo poo. We can play wow at work but I had to stop. Being disrupted from my game by those annoying fucks drove me crazy. In other news I got my worst QA scores ever today! I have been slacking on my scripted bullshit.
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Apr 10, 2013 02:31
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Loving Life Partner posted:Same here. If it was a "no distractions" type environment, I probably wouldn't have lasted a month. I've managed to sneak small programs onto my PC as well, like Destkop Dungeons and TOME and poo poo. That's what work from home was like for me. WoW or World of Tanks, TV in the background, beer on the desk. It ruled.
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Apr 10, 2013 03:53
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People get to play games like WoW while taking calls? Holy poo poo, the most I ever did was play minesweeper on the quiet, and if I wasn't quick enough in hiding the window when anyone in authority walked past I got reamed.
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Apr 10, 2013 11:01
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I recently spoke with a good friend who had worked at a call centre with an infestation of fleas and rats. This went on for a very long time in a country with solid labour and workplace health and safety laws and low unemployment. This person is intelligent and educated and got stuck in the cultish mindset of the call centre employee. Please, please, please all of you keep your local laws on workplace rights bookmarked and jot down the numbers of workplace advocates or lawyers with free consultations so you can call someone if you need to. Don't accept what your manager or team leader or human resources rep says on an issue without getting a second opinion from a reputable source, they are generally just repeating the lies or misinformation of the person above them. Never let yourself believe that it can't be 'that bad' because everyone else on your floor puts up with it, or that it's okay if some things are a little bit against the law because of some other bullshit $0.05 concession like fruit baskets or gym memberships, or that a paycheck is more important than your health. p.s. I am technically a hypocrite - I had my 7 year anniversary last week as I am still trying to find a job in my chosen career to escape into, but I at least get to work from home and skip 70% of the bullshit. That said, I work from home and skip 70% of the bullshit and am effectively paid a full time wage to do very little and I am still itching, pardon the pun, to escape. Oh, and I also used to play WoW and got sick of people interrupting me - it's much better to play games with a pause button or just watch a movie.
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Apr 10, 2013 16:32
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Kat Delacour posted:p.s. I am technically a hypocrite - I had my 7 year anniversary last week as I am still trying to find a job in my chosen career to escape into, but I at least get to work from home and skip 70% of the bullshit. That said, I work from home and skip 70% of the bullshit and am effectively paid a full time wage to do very little and I am still itching, pardon the pun, to escape. Oh, and I also used to play WoW and got sick of people interrupting me - it's much better to play games with a pause button or just watch a movie. I have a feeling this is what is going to happen to me when I get work at home. Sit at home in my underwear not giving two shits.
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Apr 10, 2013 17:53
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Two shits? That's being generous. Not a single gently caress was given in my case.
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Apr 10, 2013 19:50
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It was pretty common for people at my old center to get the greenlight to work from home and then quit 2 months later. Working from home means not having to look over your shoulder while you browse Monster or Craigslist. Also https://www.virtualnes.com was my drug of choice to pass the time.
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Apr 11, 2013 08:35
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I am currently working in Afghanistan. Our small base is in the process of shutting down, so we are down to making GBS threads in bags and eating MRE's three meals a day. Sleeping arrangements are very cramped and as soon as the sun starts shining, the entire tent heats up and begins to smell like balls and armpits. It's pretty much impossible to chill on your bunk between sunrise and sunset, and the only way to access the internet is in another tent (without air conditioning, of course) located on the opposite side of the airfield. There are 8 computers for the 60 or so people still stuck here, so there is usually a wait and you finish your business within 20 minutes unless you are an rear end in a top hat. I save threads I want to read, and then take them back to my bunk when the sun goes down and click through them to stave off the boredom. My trackpad always gets wonky after a few minutes from the sweat on my fingertips. The only way to shower is by using wet wipes, and there is no laundry. That being said, reading this thread has made me count my lucky stars because at least I don't work in a call centre anymore.
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Apr 11, 2013 12:22
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baw posted:I am currently working in Afghanistan. Our small base is in the process of shutting down, so we are down to making GBS threads in bags and eating MRE's three meals a day. Sleeping arrangements are very cramped and as soon as the sun starts shining, the entire tent heats up and begins to smell like balls and armpits. It's pretty much impossible to chill on your bunk between sunrise and sunset, and the only way to access the internet is in another tent (without air conditioning, of course) located on the opposite side of the airfield. There are 8 computers for the 60 or so people still stuck here, so there is usually a wait and you finish your business within 20 minutes unless you are an rear end in a top hat. I save threads I want to read, and then take them back to my bunk when the sun goes down and click through them to stave off the boredom. My trackpad always gets wonky after a few minutes from the sweat on my fingertips. The only way to shower is by using wet wipes, and there is no laundry. gently caress you that sounds amazing.
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Apr 11, 2013 18:10
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baw posted:I am currently working in Afghanistan. Our small base is in the process of shutting down, so we are down to making GBS threads in bags and eating MRE's three meals a day. Sleeping arrangements are very cramped and as soon as the sun starts shining, the entire tent heats up and begins to smell like balls and armpits. It's pretty much impossible to chill on your bunk between sunrise and sunset, and the only way to access the internet is in another tent (without air conditioning, of course) located on the opposite side of the airfield. There are 8 computers for the 60 or so people still stuck here, so there is usually a wait and you finish your business within 20 minutes unless you are an rear end in a top hat. I save threads I want to read, and then take them back to my bunk when the sun goes down and click through them to stave off the boredom. My trackpad always gets wonky after a few minutes from the sweat on my fingertips. The only way to shower is by using wet wipes, and there is no laundry. I'm never complaining again.
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Apr 12, 2013 01:39
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Welp...they've now decided that we have to share desks. What little perk it was to have a stuffed bunny and a picture of my boyfriend and a picture of my goddaughter is gone now because they've decided it's perfectly reasonable to share desks and headsets (foreseeable since they don't have enough headsets as it is). gently caress company policy. I don't care if it's "theft" I will be detaching my headset and take it home every night so I don't have to loving share it with some other employee.
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Apr 12, 2013 02:22
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cuntvalet posted:Welp...they've now decided that we have to share desks. What little perk it was to have a stuffed bunny and a picture of my boyfriend and a picture of my goddaughter is gone now because they've decided it's perfectly reasonable to share desks and headsets (foreseeable since they don't have enough headsets as it is).  I would never EVER wear a headset worn by another person. And everytime I did have to change desks I spent a good 45+ minutes cleaning the poo poo out of the desk/keyboard/mouse.
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Apr 12, 2013 02:33
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cuntvalet posted:Welp...they've now decided that we have to share desks. What little perk it was to have a stuffed bunny and a picture of my boyfriend and a picture of my goddaughter is gone now because they've decided it's perfectly reasonable to share desks and headsets (foreseeable since they don't have enough headsets as it is).  I don't think you have a job, I think you're an unwitting test subject in some kind of vast study of sadistic corporate policies.
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Apr 12, 2013 02:46
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Loving Life Partner posted:
Hot-desking and sharing headsets is pretty standard for most call-centres. If you have your own ear and mouth peice it isn't an issue, and if you don't, well, you're already in the land of bad hygeine anyway 'cos who knows who had it before you. It's ironic, but the more cuntvalet complains, the better her call centre actually seems. Drawing and playing on your phone? Private desk that you can peronalise (well, 'til this point)? I'd have loved that. I guess the difference was that I mainly worked in banks who are strict as gently caress with regard to ANYTHING. But yeah, to me, compaining about hot-desking is like someone claiming that their yachts swimmingpool doesn't have a jacuzzi.
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Apr 12, 2013 03:05
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Hah, they get mad at us if we sit anywhere but our one assigned desk. Sharing a desk seems insane to me, and ours are personalized to hell. One of my coworkers has a metric fuckton of photographs and gadgets and doohickeys. I haven't even got flak for putting basically an anarchist symbol on my desk (they handed out foam #1 fingers at a rally, I cut off the finger and formed it into a fist and wrote "RESIST" on it in big red and black letters, lol) Hey maybe my job isn't so terrible, I'm going to feel good tomorrow  (still don't want to go to work ever)
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Apr 12, 2013 03:18
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I guess it depends on whether you work somewhere with shifts or not (and how much room there is of course). In the UK, anyway, I don't know of any call centre where you'd get your own desks. I'm sure it changes between countries, for example, in the UK, there are no cubicles. Which is good, 'cos cubicles seem like my worst nightmare.
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Apr 12, 2013 03:26
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Considering my previous call center had several people who had been lectured about personal hygiene and happily ignored them... Well, I am going to leave it at that I am glad Bath and Body Works had a battery powered oil warmer so I could at least have some sort of pleasant, not reeking body smell. We ended up being issued headsets because swine flu broke out and no one who could even wobble in would stay home (That's how I got it- one of my co-workers was like, TEEHEE I HAVE SWINE FLU *HACKWHEEZE*).
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Apr 12, 2013 03:47
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Can we rrename this thread "Cuntvalet quit your job plz"
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Apr 12, 2013 18:14
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My company's been in the news recently (not in the good way), and thankfully I haven't had many people call to rant or close their accounts, but it's really made me less tolerant of people's racist bullshit. I'm the one people point to when they talk about "having an upbeat attitude with clients" and I nearly ended up screaming at some jackass yesterday. Thankfully I booked some vacation days off right after this so I can cool down but I think I'm finally starting to lose my grip.
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Apr 12, 2013 18:36
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Oh, racists. I got so many of those. One lady was like, YES! I GOT A LITTLE WHITE GIRL! when I answered the phone. I was in shock for a moment. Another guy was ranting the moment the call started "I don't want any red people, brown people, robots or whatever. I WANT A PERSON ON THE LINE!" and ugh, god help you if they went on a spiel about Indian or Asian call centers. I really had to bite my tongue on some of them.
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Apr 12, 2013 19:48
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I read this occasionally to remind me of why I'm never going back, and the above reminded me of a call that really helped my AHT: "ALREET MATE WHERE THE FOOK ARE YOU FROM THEN" "...Glasgow?" "...shite. Sorry." Do people honestly phone to just rant at random foreign people? (don't answer this)
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Apr 12, 2013 21:33
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Wootcannon posted:Do people honestly phone to just rant at random foreign people? (don't answer this) I get so many complaints about our National Help Desk which is overseas. Those loving arabs/indians/pakistani/chinese/whatever else they decide they are retards can't speak no English! Neither can you fucktard, shut up.
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Apr 12, 2013 21:48
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Chicken Doodle posted:My company's been in the news recently (not in the good way), and thankfully I haven't had many people call to rant or close their accounts, but it's really made me less tolerant of people's racist bullshit. I'm the one people point to when they talk about "having an upbeat attitude with clients" and I nearly ended up screaming at some jackass yesterday. You poor bastard. I bet you have a bunch of people asking if YOU'RE from overseas and have been outsourced from good CANADIAN jobs. gently caress banks.
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Apr 13, 2013 03:28
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there's a Nepalese guy with a strong accent on my floor. I feel sorry for him; he must get a lot of poo poo from those people.
TOTSE fucked around with this message at 07:55 on Mar 28, 2018 |
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Apr 13, 2013 09:30
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Loving Life Partner posted:I don't think you have a job, I think you're an unwitting test subject in some kind of vast study of sadistic corporate policies. I un-ironically, literally thought this about my call center for the last 5 years I was there and it actually helped me cope.
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Apr 14, 2013 08:40
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BlackIronHeart posted:I un-ironically, literally thought this about my call center for the last 5 years I was there and it actually helped me cope. I feel like I've hit a sort of nega-nirvana, in which my work place has become a sadistic parody of itself. At least when I went home sick on Friday nobody guilted me about it.  ...Oh wait...when I went to tell my TL, he rolled his chair to the other side of his office-cubicle thing. 
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Apr 15, 2013 00:58
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cuntvalet posted:I feel like I've hit a sort of nega-nirvana, in which my work place has become a sadistic parody of itself. I went home sick one day. My boss' boss happened to be in a few days later and asked if it hadnt been better if I hadnt stayed home the entire day instead. I have people paying me and then asking me to stay home sick.
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Apr 15, 2013 05:43
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