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Rogers employees say managers turn a blind eye so call centre can lie and cheat

Charlemagne

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Rogers employees say managers turn a blind eye so call centre workers can lie and cheat customers

'We do not believe the concerns raised represent our values or sales practices,' Rogers says

Erica Johnson - CBC News

ROGERS CALL CENTRE

Call centre employees working for Rogers Communications say the telecom company is pressuring them to try to make a sale on every call — even to elderly people who don't understand or need certain products or services.

In emails and interviews with Go Public, dozens of Rogers workers say they're under "extreme pressure" to hit sales targets or risk termination.

Their claims come on the heels of Bell Canada workers revealing similar pressures to upsell customers, often at the expense of ethics.

"You're supposed to look at a customer's account and sell them cable, home phone, home security, a credit card — whatever is missing," says an employee who currently works at Rogers' major call centre in Ottawa and has asked CBC to conceal his identity to avoid retribution in his workplace.

He says even when people are off sick, their sales targets aren't adjusted unless they go on short-term disability, "so you're at home, trying to get better, but stressing about how you're going to keep your job."

He admits when he is "desperate" to earn sales points, he signs up seniors for internet service, and then tells them a technician is going to come to their house "to install a modem for their TV" — modems are required for internet, not TV.

"We're giving internet service to customers who actually do not have a computer," he says.

ROGERS WHISTLEBLOWER FIXED

He also admits to not telling [mostly older] customers about installation fees for TV and internet ($49.99 for both), internet activation fees ($14.95) or cellphone activation charges ($25) and to sneaking extra products or services onto a bill.

"Even customers who have home phone service, I say, 'How about I add a second line for your home phone and I'll give you a discount for your other product?' Which makes no sense.

"It feels really bad," he says. "But you have all this pressure on you. All your managers are around you, telling you to sell, sell, sell."

Jessica Robinson recently quit working at the Ottawa call centre after seven years.

She, too, says employees are expected to try to sell on every call, even when customers want to cancel services, complain about malfunctioning products, or are grieving the loss of a partner.

"When I had my interview ... they actually asked me 'If an elderly lady calls in to cancel her sports package on her TV because her husband just died, are you going to convince her to keep it and add more?'" says Robinson.

Robinson says she dealt with a lot of calls from customers who were angry about confusing or increasing bills, a concern echoed by other past and present Rogers workers.

"They teach us how to be empathetic. To say things like 'I understand how frustrating that must be,'" says Robinson. "I'm like, why? We're the ones screwing them over."

Jessica Robinson

'Most managers know'

Rogers employees who contacted CBC say the pressure to mislead customers comes from their managers, who turn a blind eye to sales reps who are selling a lot of products or services, by not monitoring their calls as closely as others.

"Managers know these reps are unethical," says James Woodward, who worked in a Rogers call centre just over two years ago. "So they try not to listen to those calls."

He says managers are less focused on customer satisfaction than they are on making money.

"I would get five cellphone activations in a day and sell a bunch of cable products, and then my manager would say, 'No credit card?' It was always what I didn't do."

Woodward says he was expected to try to sell a product or service even when customers were just calling up to say, "I hate you guys!"

He admits to misleading customers, especially at the end of the month if he was shy of meeting his sales targets.

Customer service suffers

Many of the Rogers employees Go Public spoke to say the pressure they're under to make sales actually prevents them from providing good customer service.

They described how they "drop" calls when it becomes clear a customer is calling to cancel a service, because it will count against their sales targets.

"That's why most customers have to call in three, four, five times to get a problem resolved," says the employee currently working at Rogers' Ottawa call centre. "This is normal."

Rogers takes concerns 'very seriously'

No one from Rogers Communications would give an interview, but in a statement to Go Public, spokesperson Paula Lash wrote, "While we do not believe the concerns raised represent our values or sales practices, we take them very seriously and we will work with our team to respond to these concerns."

Lash also wrote that sales targets are achievable and that employees may be placed on performance improvement plans, which can lead to termination, for a variety of reasons including low attendance, concerns about behaviour, customer feedback, low sales, or a combination of reasons.

SHELDON SNIDER

'It's bait and switch'

Sheldon Snider believes he was deliberately misled and confused when he called Rogers a year ago.

The 72-year-old from Richmond, B.C., says he wanted to upgrade his phone and find out whether he qualified for a 25 per cent corporate discount.

He says a sales rep told him he did qualify, but then talked to him for an hour and a half, convincing him to add a phone for his granddaughter, while Snider tried to make notes and keep track of various fees and offers.

When he received his next bill — a 17-page document — he discovered it was $135 more than he had initially been paying, and that he now didn't qualify for the corporate discount.

"I think it's a bait and switch because they bait you with a discount, then switch it and don't give it to you. It's as simple as that," says Snider.

In an email to Snider, Rogers acknowledged a sales agent "misinformed" him, but did not offer the 25 per cent discount he was seeking.

Sheldon Snider and Erica

Sheldon Snider shows Go Public reporter Erica Johnson his lengthy and complicated Rogers bill. (Christer Waara/CBC)
After Go Public made inquiries, Rogers credited Snider's account about $360 dollars for other issues, and replaced his granddaughter's phone after it cracked, but Snider says his bill is still unclear. He's still stuck in an expensive contract that wasn't properly explained, and says Rogers did not address his concerns about "troubling" sales tactics.

CRTC urged to hold telecom inquiry

These recent Rogers allegations and previous Go Public stories revealing high pressure sales tactics at Bell Canada have prompted an Ottawa-based advocacy group to call on the CRTC to hold a public inquiry into telecom sales tactics.

The executive director of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) says there are no regulations around sales practices, and no requirement that telecoms sell customers products that are suitable.

John Lawford

"It's completely appropriate for the CRTC to say, 'We're going to set out rules,'" says John Lawford. "I think it'd be quite eye-opening to have an open, public consultation at the CRTC about sales practices of big telecom companies."

In a letter to the CRTC, Lawford wrote that many of the aggressive sales practices appear to target vulnerable consumers, including older Canadians, grieving spouses and blind customers.

A spokesperson for the CRTC, Patricia Valladao, acknowledged receiving PIAC's letter, but would not comment further on an inquiry.

She did acknowledge that the Wireless Code governing telecoms does not address sales tactics, and encouraged consumers who feel their wireless provider hasn't provided clear and accurate information to them, to "try to resolve the issue with their service provider."

If that fails, Valladao suggests contacting the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services, which mediates disputes between customers and their telecom providers.

'Stop pressuring us'

Many of the dozens of Rogers and Bell workers Go Public spoke to had similar recommendations when asked what it would take to improve customer service and curb unethical behaviour.

"They should take the pressure off the sales people," says the current sales rep in Rogers' Ottawa call centre we interviewed.

"Stop increasing our targets. Stop pressuring us to try to make a sale on every call. And remove these [performance improvement] plans to get you fired."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/rogers-employees-pressure-to-sell-1.4481128
 

apoptygma

Well-known member
Dec 31, 2017
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CBC has a similar article about Bell doing the exact same thing.
Surprise surprise.
 

sempel

Banned
Feb 23, 2017
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The unfortunate truth is this is how many companies operate. They try and upsell you on anything/everything whether you need it or not. That's where a "good company" comes in - they sell you things you need, nothing more. They usually do well because word-of-mouth spreads. It's similar when we talk about an honest mechanic. If you're mechanic tells you "I can do A, B, C, but you only need A, don't bother with B, C" you will not only stick with him/her, you will also recommend him/her to everyone you know.

The biggest issue with some of these providers is they are monopolies. Things are changing but there was a time where your location forced you to use specific providers so you were stuck with the Rogers/Cogeco/Bell service and had no choice even if the service was bad.
 

huckfinn

Banned from schools.....
Aug 16, 2011
2,493
103
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On the Credit River with Jim
Banks do it a lot as well. I was a senior account manager at RBC in my past, and of course they wanted us to push product.

Many people don't know little things like your personal loans automatically have a life / disability insurance premium attached to it and buried in your payments, that you can ask to have removed. Not a huge amount, but relatively speaking it's expensive.
 

underice

Member
Jan 5, 2007
229
0
16
Here is a warning about bell business telephone contracts
In the fine print,they reserve the right to raise the price by 10% per year of the NON DISCOUNTED amount.

Say it was 100 per month for 3 years,reg price is 150,so without reading the 10 page electronic document,like any other person you think that 100 per month on a 36 month term is just that,

Until you notice your bill keeps getting bigger,then you call them and go,what the fuck.

They then point you to page 4 paragraph 3 that says they have the right,then you ask why was this not pointed out to me?

They say read the contract,so I did,and its there as they pointed it out,but what they conveniently failed to point out is that on page 10 (or so) it says that if the exercise their right to raise the rate,you have the right to cancel.

So ,I canceled and did not pay my final bill.They sent my company to collections,told them the story and not to bother me.

They called one or two more times and never heard from them again.

I am still using bell lines and internet thru a re seller at half the price.

So they are all a bunch of lying fucking sleazebags ,who are ready to screw small business and individuals ,however and whenever possible.
 

Occasionally

Active member
May 22, 2011
2,929
7
38
That's why you never trust a telemarketer.

Doesn't matter if it's from a big bank or Dave's Driveway Paving Company.

If you need extra services do research and call them yourself.

All these telemarketers will do is hassles you and try to overpower you with their shady selling techniques hoping you bite.
 

bver_hunter

Well-known member
Nov 5, 2005
27,331
5,556
113
Here is a warning about bell business telephone contracts
In the fine print,they reserve the right to raise the price by 10% per year of the NON DISCOUNTED amount.

Say it was 100 per month for 3 years,reg price is 150,so without reading the 10 page electronic document,like any other person you think that 100 per month on a 36 month term is just that,

Until you notice your bill keeps getting bigger,then you call them and go,what the fuck.

They then point you to page 4 paragraph 3 that says they have the right,then you ask why was this not pointed out to me?

They say read the contract,so I did,and its there as they pointed it out,but what they conveniently failed to point out is that on page 10 (or so) it says that if the exercise their right to raise the rate,you have the right to cancel.

So ,I canceled and did not pay my final bill.They sent my company to collections,told them the story and not to bother me.

They called one or two more times and never heard from them again.

I am still using bell lines and internet thru a re seller at half the price.

So they are all a bunch of lying fucking sleazebags ,who are ready to screw small business and individuals ,however and whenever possible.
The only issue is if they have all your personal details, then that could affect your credit, as they will keep on charging your account with interest. Have you checked your credit recently?
 

diana <3

Member
Apr 26, 2014
268
2
18
I've done that job in the past, it's miserable as they describe. Absolutely the most dehumanizing experience- constant unreasonable pressure from bosses to perform, with expectations always changing, and from customers a depressing combination of equally unreasonable expectations, bitter personal rudeness, and people who have genuine problems who you still can't help because of how you're required to upsell, stall, ect. And since every call is recorded and every stat is tracked, there's very little room to do what is supposed to be your job- whether it's helping someone manage their accounts and services in the way that's best for them or helping them fix a glitch with their iPhone.
 

sempel

Banned
Feb 23, 2017
3,649
25
0
Here is a warning about bell business telephone contracts
In the fine print,they reserve the right to raise the price by 10% per year of the NON DISCOUNTED amount.

Say it was 100 per month for 3 years,reg price is 150,so without reading the 10 page electronic document,like any other person you think that 100 per month on a 36 month term is just that,

Until you notice your bill keeps getting bigger,then you call them and go,what the fuck.

They then point you to page 4 paragraph 3 that says they have the right,then you ask why was this not pointed out to me?

They say read the contract,so I did,and its there as they pointed it out,but what they conveniently failed to point out is that on page 10 (or so) it says that if the exercise their right to raise the rate,you have the right to cancel.

So ,I canceled and did not pay my final bill.They sent my company to collections,told them the story and not to bother me.

They called one or two more times and never heard from them again.

I am still using bell lines and internet thru a re seller at half the price.

So they are all a bunch of lying fucking sleazebags ,who are ready to screw small business and individuals ,however and whenever possible.
Don't take this the wrong way but if you are signing something for your company or on behalf of a company, you are supposed to read the fine print. In our personal lives we should also but most of us never have the time. On the other hand, with companies, the reason things move slowly is because of the red tape and all the due diligence that is supposed to be done.

I've read over a few company contracts and my God were they terribly mismanaged. I saw equipment lease contracts where 50%+ of the information was missing. I couldn't believe somebody had signed on the bottom line without making sure everything was filled out and the terms were crystal clear. So now I'm seeing lease payments for thousands of dollars with limited idea about what they are for, when they will end, etc. And the only person to blame is the person(s) who signed/approved, who was unfortunately one of the owners. Bottom line, I think people lower on the ladder would have been fired if it was brought to light.

Even in the case of leases, when I sign a lease for a place I'm renting, I go over every paragraph. I remember one agreement that said I pay for things breaking. If I was responsible, I cover the cost. If I wasn't, I pay the first part of the bill. So either way I pay? I crossed out that line in the agreement, along with others.
 

james t kirk

Well-known member
Aug 17, 2001
23,932
3,679
113
Bell is just as bad.

I think the only way to do it is to switch providers every 2 years , whatever the term of your deal is.

It's BS, but c'est La vie.
 

TFZL1

Well-known member
Mar 24, 2015
1,132
216
63
After many years of paying either Rogers or bell, I finally am free.
Been lied to too many times, and felt ripped off in the end.

Unfortunately, they monopolize the industry, so although I don’t deal with either, I pay a provider who in turn uses their services.

I’m on OTA antenna for tv with a channelmaster DVR and loving it.
 

rhuarc29

Well-known member
Apr 15, 2009
9,590
1,193
113
I love how they pass the buck to the managers. "Oh, I know I'm doing something unethical, but the managers turn a blind eye to it so it, so blame them." FYI, those managers are pressured as well. Even the top dogs at Rogers are pressured by their shareholders. Everyone faces that pressure, and it only alleviates when good people refuse to play ball. The higher up you are in a company, the more power you have to disrupt the status quo. Which is why I'd lay these tactics at the feet of the board of directors for Rogers.
 

underice

Member
Jan 5, 2007
229
0
16
The only issue is if they have all your personal details, then that could affect your credit, as they will keep on charging your account with interest. Have you checked your credit recently?
Yes bell reports to the bureau,I dont give a shit over a 300-400 $ negative mark on my company's credit bureau.If it was personal,different story,it would affect your score.I would have paid it.This company has been around 30 plus years ,my creditors would get a chuckle out of a few hundred bucks to bell.
 

underice

Member
Jan 5, 2007
229
0
16
Don't take this the wrong way but if you are signing something for your company or on behalf of a company, you are supposed to read the fine print. In our personal lives we should also but most of us never have the time. On the other hand, with companies, the reason things move slowly is because of the red tape and all the due diligence that is supposed to be done.

I've read over a few company contracts and my God were they terribly mismanaged. I saw equipment lease contracts where 50%+ of the information was missing. I couldn't believe somebody had signed on the bottom line without making sure everything was filled out and the terms were crystal clear. So now I'm seeing lease payments for thousands of dollars with limited idea about what they are for, when they will end, etc. And the only person to blame is the person(s) who signed/approved, who was unfortunately one of the owners. Bottom line, I think people lower on the ladder would have been fired if it was brought to light.

Even in the case of leases, when I sign a lease for a place I'm renting, I go over every paragraph. I remember one agreement that said I pay for things breaking. If I was responsible, I cover the cost. If I wasn't, I pay the first part of the bill. So either way I pay? I crossed out that line in the agreement, along with others.

Equipment leases,premise leases,ok. But as a Canadian,you would think that there would be a basic level of trust ,from a large company like bell selling services to small Canadian business.You would just think,that when a representative from a company like bell,is telling you 100 bucks a month,that its going to be 100 bucks a month.

I had dealt with them in the past and this was not the case.

So,this is something they slipped into their contracts and made no effort to point it out.

Then,when you call them out on it,they point to the contract,conveniently knowing that part of the contract,but forcing you to read it to find out the escape clause.

That is just plain sleazy,and that is what this thread is about.

Sleazy sales techniques employed by sales people for large companies.
 

sempel

Banned
Feb 23, 2017
3,649
25
0
Equipment leases,premise leases,ok. But as a Canadian,you would think that there would be a basic level of trust ,from a large company like bell selling services to small Canadian business.You would just think,that when a representative from a company like bell,is telling you 100 bucks a month,that its going to be 100 bucks a month.

I had dealt with them in the past and this was not the case.

So,this is something they slipped into their contracts and made no effort to point it out.

Then,when you call them out on it,they point to the contract,conveniently knowing that part of the contract,but forcing you to read it to find out the escape clause.

That is just plain sleazy,and that is what this thread is about.

Sleazy sales techniques employed by sales people for large companies.
I agree - totally sleazy on their part. But most of this thread is about call centre employees who speak with you and get your okay to change your services so there is no known contract to read. Different case if you are given something to read and a rep "conveniently" forgets to tell you about hidden notations.
 

Smash

Active member
Apr 20, 2005
4,076
11
38
T Dot
Switched to start.ca 3 years ago and never looked back
 

huckfinn

Banned from schools.....
Aug 16, 2011
2,493
103
63
On the Credit River with Jim
Bell is just as bad.

I think the only way to do it is to switch providers every 2 years , whatever the term of your deal is.

It's BS, but c'est La vie.
Did you know Bell charges loan shark interest?

3% monthly (42.58% per annum) A late payment charge may be applied to any unpaid balance 30 days after the billing date. Payments sent by mail are credited the day we receive them. The interest rate applied to late payments can be found under the information section of your phone bill.
 

sempel

Banned
Feb 23, 2017
3,649
25
0
Did you know Bell charges loan shark interest?

3% monthly (42.58% per annum) A late payment charge may be applied to any unpaid balance 30 days after the billing date. Payments sent by mail are credited the day we receive them. The interest rate applied to late payments can be found under the information section of your phone bill.
A lot of companies do. I missed a payment on my cable bill for $17-18. The late charge was $20. It was my last bill with them so I shrugged it off but had that happened earlier on I would have cancelled service immediately. The better companies though recognize people who pay on time and remove late charges if there's a one-time slip.
 

Smallcock

Active member
Jun 5, 2009
13,703
21
38
Phone rogers and tell them you are going to a cheaper service and they will drop their rates because you are such a valued customer
I did that with Rogers years ago and they essentially told me to go fuck myself. This is why we should have allowed US competitors into the market. When monopolies are protected by law from competition, you get unchecked abuses.
 
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