The humble telemarketer - the occupation of choice for students, travellers and millions of Indians. One of Australia’s most hated professions.
The 3rd of May will be a good day for anyone who has ever picked up the phone and heard that long pause….. and then… Hello, is Mrs Jones there?
The Australian Communications and Media Authority will roll out the much anticipated Do Not Call Register.
Just register your details and, voila! You will never get a telemarketing call again. And yes, it does include those calls from India.
The ACMA believe the register will be wildly popular. Australians hate telemarketing.
It’s understandable - we didn’t ask to be called, and with quality family time at a premium, most of us don’t want to waste it speaking to a stranger about a new phone plan.
But do we ever think about what it must be like to be the one who has to dial our number?
According to Rosie Lentini, an ex- Market Researcher, it’s not fun.
“It could be really soul destroying. People were so rude. It was like they forgot that you were a human being”, she says.
Rosie, 26, worked in the industry for 9 months during her honours year at uni.
“It really ruined my psyche. I would be so depressed at the end of the day. I would leave and feel used”, she says.
Stress related leave in call centres is common. Making and taking calls; being hung up on and abused. It can drive someone over the edge.
Andrew Brown, 25, would have preferred the callers to simply hang up on him.
“One person told me if I didn’t get off the phone, he would come to where I was working, wrap the phone cord around my neck and shove the receiver down my throat”, he says.
Telstra’s call centre environment and unrealistic sales targets caused one employee so much stress, she took her own life.
The task is perhaps so torturous, that a Sydney jail opened a call centre and put their female prisoners to work. The inmates were paid $35 a week to sell recycled ink cartridges and take customer calls for the RTA. Does anyone deserve such punishment?
Coming up with the most creative ways to torture a telemarketer has become a bit of a sport. Elaborate methods to do away with nuisance calls.
But ultimately, that person on the other end of the line has a family too. And they need to pay their bills.
So maybe next time you get a call, give them a break.
You can just politely say, “no thanks.”
