Dear Customer Service Workers:

[SeattleGirl]

(Well, not all of you; just the rude ones.)

I know your job isn't always easy. I know that some of the people who call you, or appear before you in person, can be real jerks. I know there are people who treat you like you are their personal doormat, and Lord knows, you don't deserve that.

But you know what? I don't deserve YOUR rudeness, especially when I treat you politely and with respect. You just got off a call with an asshole? The person you just dealt with in line was a jerk? I'm sorry. I really am, because as I said, you don't deserve that.

But here's a tip: Don't assume that the next person on the phone or in line is also an asshole or a jerk. Don't hold on to that anger and throw it at that new person. That new person may be me, the one who will treat you politely and with respect. The one who may make you feel a bit better about your job, about your day. If someone was just rude to me, I wouldn't take it out on you. Please don't do that to me.

Unless I show myself to be a pig, don't throw shit at me. You deserve respect, but guess what? So do I.

Respectfully yours,

SeattleGirl

[ericgtr]

1. Agreed

and well said. I take it you understood this person through their heavy accent? :P

[SeattleGirl]

5. Actually, this call was to a local place in Seattle.

:P

[MrCoffee]

2. dear customer service workers,

you have approximately 3 seconds to get over the last caller who spent 15 minutes literally calling you every filthy name in the book before you must be super-polite and cheerful to the next caller.

get back to work.

[SeattleGirl]

7. Now, now, MrCoffee.

My point is that they shouldn't treat the next person in line or on the phone as if they are also a jerk, with the full force of the anger they might be feeling at the previous person.

In my job, I deal with angry people all the time, but what I don't do is automatically treat my next client badly because the previous one was nasty to me.

I'm not saying that they have to pretend that they aren't affected by being treated badly.

[MrCoffee]

16. that's exactly how your post reads, though

i have read many of your posts, and have a great deal of respect for you, but these rants about CSR's get my dander all the way up.

High call volumes, piss-poor wages, abysmal working conditions, and having to kow-tow to every last caller puts a strain on a person. many times they don't have a chance to wind down after being berated and insulted for however long the asshat before you chose to make them their whipping post. they hang up and the phone rings immediately. they're not robots (otherwise we'd gripe about the endless phone tree), so how can you expect them to switch off in the 2 literal seconds between calls?

i'm sorry you had a bad experience, but consider for half a second what kind of day the person on the other end must be having to treat you that way.

[SeattleGirl]

17. Then we will have to agree to disagree.

I've worked shit jobs before (like fast food worker and retail), so I've been on that end of things, believe me. And I do know how difficult it is to get through a day when it seems as if nearly everyone you deal with is kicking the crap out of you. But I also had bosses who would have fired me if I treated customers like that, even if there were times when I was sorely tempted to so that.

I also think that there are ways to deal with rude, nasty people without throwing shit back at them in return.

But hey, that's just me.

[MrCoffee]

20. agreed

and i do agree that the CSR should not have been rude to you.

[smtpgirl]

24. Yep, a rude customer called up my supervisor one day

and told my supervisor that I said she was stupid.

I was so glad to find out that my calls were being monitored that morning by my supervisor. Every other week, for customer satisfaction, each Tech had their calls monitored for quality assurance.

I did not call the customer stupid, she made that up because I was not able to help her. My supervisor heard the WHOLE conversation.

[SeattleGirl]

26. I had a client once who was really pushy, and she was always

angry at me because she couldn't have what she wanted WHEN she wanted (because of how the laws in the state are).

She started faxing all kinds of letters to my bosses, filled with lies about what I supposedly had done, not done, said, not said, etc. But I was a cube rat at the time, and my bosses and other workers could hear my conversations with her, and knew what this woman was saying was all lies.

Everytime a new fax would come in from this woman, my bosses would laugh and then shred it. :7

[smtpgirl]

23. The CSR, does not have time to "wind down" before the next

call comes in.

My call queue was set for 10 seconds after the last caller hung up until the next call came in.

No matter is you were on a 2 hour phone call, just finishing up your Remedy Help Desk ticket after the last call.

No matter if you have to go to the bathroom, no matter if you need a drink, you have to stay at your desk and answer calls from 10-2 with no breaks with people who "know alot about computers", but it takes about 5 minutes to describe a power button on the PC to the customer that can't seem to find the power button on the PC.

[smtpgirl]

19. Good point MrCoffee

Being a part of an IT team, I definitely know how it is.

I refuse to EVER work at a call center ever again, just because of this. Taking 50-60 calls a day with someone screaming at you, talking over you, not listening what you say, a know-it-all attitude from the caller that they "Know alot about computers".

Well if you did caller, "know alot about computers", why did you call me?

[SeattleGirl]

22. Exactly, smtpgirl.

Why DID they call you if they are the Grand Poobah of Computer Knowledge?

Some people, huh? :eyes:

[smtpgirl]

25. I do not condone rudness by any means, but people can be

very mean & nasty. I know when I have had my fill, I will not take a phone call. I don't care if it hurts my numbers, but if I come off at all surly to a customer, they know and will make the whole call a living hell until you hang up the phone.

[SeattleGirl]

27. I've done the same thing too, if I've just gone 5 rounds with a

nasty client. Far better to take a few minutes and calm myself down, than be inappropriate to the next person I deal with.

And yeah, I know for a lot of people, especially those in call centers, that's not an option, which is unfortunate. Even a few minutes respite could work wonders.

[billyoc]

3. And you're not fooling anybody, we know your name's not Ted. n/t

[SeattleGirl]

8. Or Miss Jones, or Mr. Smith, either.

:P

[ohiosmith]

4. You wouldn't happen to be a "date digger" would you/

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=6810848

[Hugin]

6. One might as well ask me not to be a 'nose digger'...

*tsk*

[SeattleGirl]

9. Uh, no.

I don't get off by pawing through groceries. :)

[texas1928]

10. Oh Lord, it 's an "It's all about ME" customers...

SIGH






:P







I never did that when I was a Tech on the phones.

[SeattleGirl]

12. You think that's what I'm saying, that it's all about me?

That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying I treat others with respect. I don't think it's too much to ask for the same in return (unless for some reason I WERE being a jerk, then I deserve a swift kick in the backside).

[texas1928]

13. I was being sarcastic.

No I don't, think that.

[SeattleGirl]

14. Ah.....

My bad!

[Parche]

11. I'm Sorry did we hang up on you?

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :hi:

[SeattleGirl]

15. :snork:

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[skygazer]

18. Part of what I'm paid for is to put up with asshole customers

So I really don't and won't justify customer service people being rude or miserable.

At the same time, consider for a moment just a couple of things.

1. You're going to spend an average of a matter of minutes dealing with that rude customer service person. Customer service people spend 8 hours a day dealing with people and a whole lot of them are rude, arrogant assholes.

2. You're calling by choice. Admittedly, sometimes the only other choice is to not have what you want or need but its still a choice. Customer service people are there because they have to be.

The point is not that its okay for customer service people to be rude. It's not. But in the larger scheme of things, your putting up with them for the short time you have to is no big deal. Let it slide off you and be grateful that's not you doing that tedious job all day.

[SeattleGirl]

21. Please don't think I'm not aware of what they have to put up with.

As I said above to MrCoffee, I've worked in jobs where customers think you are there to wipe their feet on, and to take out their frustrations on, and it IS difficult to deal with, no doubt about it.

I deal with angry clients (though thankfully most of them are okay), snarky attorneys, rude doctors, etc., and there have been times when I wanted to let loose on them, believe me. And yes, I made a choice to do this job; no one is making me. And despite that, I am grateful that I am not working in customer service. That is why I always try to treat these workers politely and respectfully. Who knows what kind of jerk they may have just had to deal with.

[smtpgirl]

29. It's hard working with the public and have kudos for people that

do, we all need help sometimes and you are right SeattleGirl, not everyone can to that job.

If I am in a irritated mood, I just try to make it a quick & dirty & solve the issue as aoon as possible to be done with it.

[smtpgirl]

28. I am thankful for my job every day and am glad that I

don't work at a call center anymore.

[SeattleGirl]

30. I once worked as a telemarketer, and lasted all of one day.

I called one of the numbers on my list, and asked for Mr. So-and-So. His wife answered the phone, and said he had passed away three days before. She wasn't lying, as I found the obit in the paper that night.

I felt like absolute crap, and never went back to the job.

[MrScorpio]

31. I've been on the asshole end of some customers in my day

And I've kept my cool

Adults don't take out on people who don't deserve it, like other customers

[SeattleGirl]

32. My point exactly.

All that seems to do is just perpetrate the bad stuff, and it can be spread to more and more people. I prefer to nip it in the bud.

[idgiehkt]

33. in that same vein...

Dear workers of any stripe,

Put the !@#$% trash in the !@#$% trash can! You know when you go to toss something in the bin, and you miss, and you think, well, I'm not getting on my knees to climb under that desk and retrieve that garbage. Well, guess what, that means I have to. I'm the lowly laborer that comes in on the weekends and cleans your office, you sorry P.O.S.. If your mother knew about this she would kick your ass, she raised you better, and you know it. How would you like to spend your day crawling under one desk after another to retrieve paper clips, and pop-tart crusts, and everything else that demonstrates your lousy aim. You suck. Think of the little person.

I like my job, it is well suited to me...I get to move around the whole time I'm working, I work alone, and I am not trapped behind a desk (just under them, and not in a good way, lol), but that unreachable trash on the floor in the corner under your enormous desk unannoys the piss out of me.

respectfully yours,

the cleaning person

Thanks SG, that felt good. We need to do this more often. Sorry someone was rude to you. :hug:

[Kerrytravelers]

34. Oh, people leaving messes makes me so mad.

I'm not in Sanitation or on a cleaning team, but I can't stand it when people leave their mess everywhere.

Mr. kt and I often go to a drive-in near us on the weekend. We always throw our trash away. If the bins are overfilled, we take it home with us and throw it out there. When we drive away at the end of the night, we can not believe the messes that people thoughtlessly leave behind.

Just know that there are people out there who appreciate what you do for the rest of us!

:hi:

[idgiehkt]

37. it's unreal

the other day I almost threw away a portable CD player that someone had left in a box next to two over flowing trash cans under their desk...I was picking up all the trash that had fallen onto the floor on both sides and behind under their desk and just happened to open the box to make sure it was not trash, and there was a small CD player still in the packaging. People know better, that is what irks me, it's just that they never see the person who cleans their office so they never think about it. It's just the under the desk stuff that bothers me, because my knees have seen better days.

:hi:

[SeattleGirl]

43. That is the unfortunate other side of the coin: customers who treat

customer service workers, cleaning people, retail workers, fast food/restaurant workers, etc., like they are their personal attendants, or worse, as if they are invisible!

[idgiehkt]

53. I couldn't deal with the public

I *know* I am not cut out to be a CSR, work retail, etc, etc, Aspies just don't have what it takes *most* of the time for that kind of thing. I like this job because I don't have to deal with anyone at all, I work whenever the heck I feel like it, like I can go in at 3 in the morning if I want to, and I get to move around and get exercise on the job. Overall, I think it is a very good job to have. It is just annoying to me that people who should know better, you know, the execs with the huge office and and desk and leather chair, the ones that act like their sh*t doesn't stink, are such unbelievable slobs. It's so weird. Their cars and stuff are immaculate, like they have personal pride, but they will sit there and cut their fingernails at their desk and then there will be fingernail clippings among the pop-tart crumbs and paper clips under their desk. I'll never understand it, and I should just shut up about it, lol, sorry for the unintended hi-jack. :hi:

[SeattleGirl]

57. No problem, idg.

And I think it's great that you know yourself that well, that you realize there are some jobs you should just stay away from.

That's how I am, to an extent. I do have to deal with people, but not all day, every day. My job also involves a lot of reports and other paperwork. My office is in my home, and I love it!

:hi:

[SeattleGirl]

35. Hey idg. I absolutely agree with you.

I've seen people's desk areas that look like a bunch of pigs had a pot-luck on, around, and under them!

And thanks. :hug:

I did end up having to call this place back, and the next person I spoke with was very nice. :)

[idgiehkt]

39. I can't get over how much of it is food.

It's really gross, most of these places have mice or other pests and it's no wonder, they hit the gravy train in some of these companies. :hi:

[SeattleGirl]

41. Gross!

AND unsanitary! I wouldn't want to work in a place that was infested with bugs or mice because the people working there were pigs.

[smtpgirl]

44. I cleaned off a desk for a new hire to put her PC on

The last person that sat there was let go over 2 weeks ago, man that desk was trashed.

Unopened sugar packets, thumb tacks everywhere, coffee rings, sticky places (no I don't want to know what was there), paper clips all over the place, DUST, paperwork just stuffed in the filing cabinets and a left over coffee cake.

My boss, who was very nice about it asked me not to to that again. His line of offense, we are IT, not facilities. BTW, our facilities manager left about 2 months ago. We are now supporting fax machines & copiers (a facilities duty), because the new manager can't seem to get a replacement. My boss doesn't want IT doing housecleaning and I don't want to do housecleaning either.


I love my boss, coolest cat of all.

[SeattleGirl]

46. Oh man, that's sick (the desk, not the boss)

Lucky you didn't find a nest of cockroaches among the garbage! :scared:

[idgiehkt]

48. most places have their roaches sprayed and their rodents

poisoned or trapped. And they ALL have them, because by the time I get there on the weekends they are laying out in the middle of the floor dead. Another note to office managers: If you use glue traps and I find them, I *will* fold them over and throw them in the trash, you sadistic s.o.b.

[SeattleGirl]

51. Glue traps?

I've never heard of those. What are they? (They sound horrible.)

[idgiehkt]

55. they are rodent traps

a piece of plastic with superstrong glue that the rodent will crawl over and get stuck on. Once on there, they can't move, and they die of dehydration/starvation.

[SeattleGirl]

56. Rodents aren't my favorite creatures, but that is just wrong!

:grr:

[idgiehkt]

47. yeah, I get it

I was just raised under the principle that when you make a mess, you clean it up. I'd never want to see some of these people's houses, from the way they handle stuff at work. And almost without exception it is the women that are the worst. I think maybe it is because they have to clean at home and they get some secret pleasure out of shitting on the lowly "housecleaning" people. Thats' a sad testimony on their life, lol. I don't want to do housecleaning either, lol, but I understand, thanks in part to this job, that cleaning up after oneself is not 'beneath me' or anyone else.

[SeattleGirl]

52. It's absolutely no "beneath" one to clean up after themselves.

I've never understood that attitude.

[smtpgirl]

40. CSR's have a job too, they are not telemarketers

CSR's also have feelings & lives. I just don't get pissed off, I just hope that if that CSR treats the customer like trash, hopefully they will feel like trash too when the phone call has ended.

The WORST is Dell Support, I am calling for a power supply for my PC under warranty, ass, I know I need a power supply and don't make me to 1/2 hour more of troubleshooting, when I have tested it myself and know that it is the power supply.

I don't plan to buy a Dell anytime soon.

[SeattleGirl]

42. Oh, I know. Didn't mean to imply there were one and the same.

And yes, if I know what the problem is, I don't need someone treating me like I'm an idiot. If I don't know what the problem is, I'll tell the person on the other end of the line that very thing. Otherwise, I would like them to respond by helping me get what it is I know I need.

[Madrone]

49. I hate that too ...

...BUT, as an IT person you are WELL aware that the end user more often than not tells you they've done all of the troubleshooting (reboot? Already did, THREE TIMES! power cycle? Already DID! etc.) and know what the problem is, and continue to TELL you what it is until which time they FINALLY "humor" you enough to reboot the machine (as an example). Well, what do you KNOW! Problem fixed! It must have been that magical "4th" reboot, I guess. :eyes:

Anyway -- as much as I hate what you're talking about, it doesn't make me mad. I know *exactly* why they don't believe me. LOL

[idgiehkt]

50. I'm at the point in my life where

if someone treats me badly, someone is gonna hear about it...their manager, the company e-mail, whoever. I ask for names and write 'em down. Surprisingly, I haven't really had any bad experiences that I can think of...most of my calls are to tech support for computers and the guys I've dealt with are unbelievably patient and understanding about clueless people, at least til they hang up the phone, lol. The glaring exception is Norton, which is a lost cause and I don't use those products in my computer anymore just because a) they hang my computer up in one way or another most of the time and b) when I call to get it straightened out, I can't get any real help from the other end.

[begin_within]

36. I have never once encountered a rude customer service person.

The closest is the receptionist at my dentist, who is sassy and bossy and "seemingly" rude. She would say things like, "What do I need that for?" when I brought in my insurance card, because she had already phoned the insurance company. Once she called when I had an 11:00 a.m. appointment, and said, "We have to bump you to 3:30 p.m." I said, "Can't do that." She said, "OK, then we'll just have to work you in. What can you do," and hung up before I could say another word. I was all ready to give up on that dentist because of her. But, I could not get an appointment with a specialist for about 2 months, and I went in to ask her about it, could she change the referral to a different specialist. She made several calls and got me an appointment for this Friday. She didn't have to do any of it, it took up about 20 minutes of her time, and she gained nothing from it. So that changed my mind about her.

[SeattleGirl]

38. Wow. That's great, bob!

Fortunately, I have encountered far more nice ones than rude ones myself, but the encounters with the rude ones have been quite unpleasant.

[Mojambo]

45. As a customer service guy I agree with pretty much everything you wrote.

This is not to say I'm not rude to customers occasionally... errr often. I'm very careful to make sure I take it out on the right people though.

This is the only part that concerns me...

"That new person may be me, the one who will treat you politely and with respect. The one who may make you feel a bit better about your job, about your day.

In my experience the only thing worse than a rude customer is the customer who makes it their mission to make the retail clerk feel better about their job or their day.

I don't want that. What I want, and it's nothing personal, is to be done with you as fast as is humanly possible.

[SeattleGirl]

54. Point taken.

Each person has their preference, and yours is understandable.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

58. It wasn't my cousin in Mumbai, was it?

He's the black sheep of the family. Or is that black cow? :P :hi:

[SeattleGirl]

59. LOL!

Nah, it wasn't, unless your cousin sounds like a woman!

:hi: