I HATE New York (and others)

[Treasure]

I took ASL as my required 2nd language in HS;
When i worked @ a car dealership I got 2 or 3 relay calls - the first one threw me, only b/c it was new - and the relay person asked if i'd ever had one before - when i said "no" s/he explained how it worked, and i was a-ok; the next one i was prepared for - when we were closing that location we had a temp - she got one and just rolled with it, and when she got the call to where it needed to go looked at me all
then i explained - Deaf customer; like it was no big deal.


I also worked in a Rx advocacy call center for about 3 mos, and had relay calls frequently.

Maybe it didn't throw me as much, b/c 1 the first call asked "have you ever had this type of call before" and 2 b/c i took ASL, i also had to learn some basic Deaf Culture etiquette so knew what to expect and what not say/do



Also: NYC - my mother owned a flower shop, and had a customer from NY call, and got upset about the delivery charge for her arrangement, mom said "well when i can get my delivery drivers to drive for free i'll be happy to pass that savings on to you" the customer got nicer - something about the culture in NY you have to be rude back before they'll be nice... if you're nice from the get go, i guess you're implying that its ok for them to be rude?

[Enjis]

When I worked at Macy's as a 'floater' (someone who helps out all over the store, usually with problems salespeople are having) I would get all the relay calls transferred to me.
Every time, it was an overseas credit card scam, with the caller wanting stupid amounts of some expensive item, usually sent to some place in Africa or South America. (I want 100 Mont Blanc pens...any color...sent to Kenya)
I always had Security review the cred info, and every time, it was a stolen number.
So...I was always suspicious of relay calls.

[Andara Bledin]

I suspect that at least a bit of the problem with people flipping out when taking relay calls is that some people just can't handle anything outside of what they know.

They've had limited experience of the world, and have led relatively sheltered lives, and once they get moved outside of their comfort bubble, they have absolutely no mechanisms developed to deal with unexpected situations, which results in a complete meltdown.

^-.-^

[smileyeagle1021]

Every time, it was an overseas credit card scam, with the caller wanting stupid amounts of some expensive item, usually sent to some place in Africa or South America. (I want 100 Mont Blanc pens...any color...sent to Kenya)

Yeah, they obviously aren't using us then. As soon as we hear international order order out of the ordinary (my last one was wanting as many watches as a store had doubtless of style or quantity and wanted the card run in multiple smaller increments rather than one large one... specifically they were asking for it to be under $500 which is what most cards are set up for fraud alert). As soon as we see red flags like that we have a supervisor come on the line and do the "you should be aware that hearing users do occasionally abuse the relay system and caution should be used when performing financial transactions" spiel and give the option to either complete the call or disconnect it right then. If you chose to disconnect it then we will kill the connection and blacklist the user's IP address and it is up to them to appeal it before they can call again.

[Jamesroe]

I really really want to ask; why didn't you just email us rather than call?

It does suck that you can almost expect an inferior level of service when you are a deaf user calling a call centre. But with the high turnover of staff and the low frequency of relay calls, we couldn't adequatly train for it.

If hearing impared people used the web chat or email facilities that most companies have (most companies that are big enough to have a dedicated call centre anyway) then they may find it easier to contact customer services.

Just a thought...

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

I really really want to ask; why didn't you just email us rather than call?

It does suck that you can almost expect an inferior level of service when you are a deaf user calling a call centre. But with the high turnover of staff and the low frequency of relay calls, we couldn't adequatly train for it.

If hearing impared people used the web chat or email facilities that most companies have (most companies that are big enough to have a dedicated call centre anyway) then they may find it easier to contact customer services.

Just a thought...

That's another can of worms right there. Most web chat systems aren't very good and will give you back little more than canned responses which often have absolutely NOTHING to do with the question you just asked or issue you are trying to get resolved.

[ditchdj]

That title thread reminds me of the mod "Ace" that used to be on here. He told off some guy on 9/11 in NY that was cussing out some deli worker over spiced ham while the Twin Towers were burning to the ground!

Can't imagine how many time the word "fookin" in one minute came out of that.

[Jamesroe]

That's another can of worms right there. Most web chat systems aren't very good and will give you back little more than canned responses which often have absolutely NOTHING to do with the question you just asked or issue you are trying to get resolved.

True, web chat is not the anwser to all problems. Email isn't 100% either as you can't use it to send secure information. But It should be a first port of call at least.

[Magpie]

Question for Smiley: how fluent in English are your Deaf users? Just wondering because of the comment about using web-based contact methods. I'm assuming that to use TTY they'd have to know English, but you've made some interesting comments about some of your users' fluency. Do you translate into English for them? (Did you have to learn any ASL syntax to be better able to understand?)

[smileyeagle1021]

Question for Smiley: how fluent in English are your Deaf users? Just wondering because of the comment about using web-based contact methods. I'm assuming that to use TTY they'd have to know English, but you've made some interesting comments about some of your users' fluency. Do you translate into English for them? (Did you have to learn any ASL syntax to be better able to understand?)

You bring up another reason why deaf users will often use relay rather than the web chat etc.
They know English to varying degrees (typically those who aren't born deaf are better on average, but that isn't a guarantee).
Yes we do have to learn ASL syntax, that is the main purpose for our service to be able to translate the ASL syntax into proper English. We don't though have to translate back (most deaf people can understand English syntax even if they can't write in it).

[trailerparkmedic]

I guess I can understand that a lot of call centres that are timed on their average call length would be annoyed as a relay call would increase their average call time, but 99% of managers should understand this.

No offense, but most call centers (at least, the ones my friends and I have worked at) just give you an average handle time and grade you based on that. You're expected to meet whatever goal the center/the client/corporate has determined and no matter how many confused old ladies or relay calls or whatever you get, you have to hit the times.

I'll be honest--I hated relay calls. I don't hate deaf people, I just disliked having to talk extra slow so the operator could type everything and I didn't like the long pauses. Even with simple calls that were just gathering/checking data, it took 3x as long as with a regular customer, and when I was in retention and trying to change people's minds about closing an account... that would never take less than 20 minutes.

[noone]

Being from NY, I should take offense... but I don't.

There's a quote from a movie that sums it up "They speak very fast and very loud, and nobody listens to anybody else, with the result that nothing ever gets done."

I'm not condoning it, and not all of us are like that, I swear. I'm sorry you got stuck with the jerks.

[Rapscallion]

Seriously hooker, don't blame me
A note of interest to hearing users... if you do not make it clear that what you are saying isn't meant to be relayed, and it isn't a reason that we deem valid to the call not to relay (eg you need to speak to a manager for approval and I can't relay both sides of the conversation for context) we will continue to relay everything you say.
Making comments about "wow, I bet he would be willing to pay me for sex if I worked it right" is going to get relayed when you just say it while you are waiting for the caller's response.

I suddenly want your job so I can abuse that ability.

I hate customer service people
I know this one won't be popular on this board, but I have to say it.
What the hell is it with customer service people who can't comprehend that deaf people need to communicate too?

Sightings, Cursing out Coworkers, Morons in Management - all proof we know there are people on our side of the counter who suck. Don't worry about it.

That title thread reminds me of the mod "Ace" that used to be on here. He told off some guy on 9/11 in NY that was cussing out some deli worker over spiced ham while the Twin Towers were burning to the ground!

I miss him. I've tried to email him within the last six months to no response. I hope he's OK.

Oddly enough, during 911 I was helping moderate a MUD. One of the other admins there was a New Yorker. He said people never even looked at each other, but in the aftermath people were staring everyone else in eye as they went down the street. Said it was eerie, especially when he found himself doing it.

It did affect many people there the way you'd hope it would affect them, but without wanting it to happen. That may have been in English.

Rapscallion

Rapscallion