Call Centers in Prison

I read a post by Dr Catriona Wallace speaking of her experience when she visited a call center in Changi Women’s Prison, Singapore.  Having to learn of a nation called Bhutan was something to rejoice about; realizing that we expanded to other countries, but this is a first for me. It was to much my surprise that there was even one that existed.

I admit that negativity set in as soon as I finished reading.  This explains the questions that lingered in my thoughts.  How is it being managed?  What are the precautions?  What calls are they handling?  What type of recruitment or assessment does each candidate go through?  Are they being monitored like any other center?  How are they being trained?

Call Center Recruitment: Poaching and Bonuses

Cyber City Inc., the pioneering call center firm at the Clark Special Economic Zone (CSEZ), has asked the government and the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPA/P) to stop pirating of workers. – Reynaldo G. Navales, Sun Star Pampanga, Philippines.

At last a plea to curb poaching!  Competition is tougher and centers will do anything just to get the staff they need to meet their client’s demand.  The most common strategy would be offering a signing bonus on top of the expected increase in salary from the previous employer.

This not only hurts a center’s bottom line but is the root cause of an increase in attrition in the country.  This is not good news.  If the number gets even bigger, this will turn off new investors and could decrease the demand for outsourced work.