Geico is hiring 300 people at its Tucson call center (insurance, employment)

[phoenixmike11]

Geico to hire 300 in Tucson

[tom4416]

Good news! We have a GEICO center in Virginia where I teach and those are generally good jobs. Not real high paying but good benefits and a real chance for advancement. GEICO is real into education and rewards its employees for their continuing education via promotions and tuition reimbursement and no, not a GEICO employee or representative, just have taught college courses to hundreds of their employees.

[LittleGirly]

Wait, I was reading this thread yesterday and someone posted about the horrible working conditions in call centers. It must have been deleted because it's gone.

I spent 10 yrs of my life working in Help Desks and call centers and that post was spot on. The pay is low, the working conditions are sedentary and you are literally attached to the phone on the desk with a head set.

But hey, if you want to sit at a desk for 8 hrs a day staring at a monitor with three breaks, two ten minute breaks after a few hours and a half hour lunch in the middle, then that job is for you!!! If you want managers watching over your every move and listening into every call you take, go for it. Although those service jobs are needed in this economy, they are by no means a career. They should be temporary and a step ladder to the next level because you will lose your mind doing that as long as I did.

I wouldn't wish that job on my worst enemy. It's the most thankless and powerless job we ever created in this country.

[2farsouth]

Originally Posted by LittleGirly

Wait, I was reading this thread yesterday and someone posted about the horrible working conditions in call centers. It must have been deleted because it's gone.

I spent 10 yrs of my life working in Help Desks and call centers and that post was spot on. The pay is low, the working conditions are sedentary and you are literally attached to the phone on the desk with a head set.

But hey, if you want to sit at a desk for 8 hrs a day staring at a monitor with three breaks, two ten minute breaks after a few hours and a half hour lunch in the middle, then that job is for you!!! If you want managers watching over your every move and listening into every call you take, go for it. Although those service jobs are needed in this economy, they are by no means a career. They should be temporary and a step ladder to the next level because you will lose your mind doing that as long as I did.

I wouldn't wish that job on my worst enemy. It's the most thankless and powerless job we ever created in this country.

I have a friend working a call center here. They require you to ask permission to take a restroom break and then they time it. They constantly offer incentives and then with no reason change the rules when you are getting close. They have the same attitude, we are a right to work state, if you don't like it, you have the right to find another job. What blows me away the most is, they are always commenting on the low morale and the lack of pride and loyalty to the company. In my former life, I found lifting the spirits of my crew benefited all concerned. The company made more with higher productivity and fewer call ins. And the thing was, for the most part, giving an employee an occasional pat on the back etc, cost nothing and payed back 10 fold!

[Jimrob1]

Jobs are hard to find so you take them when you find them. I worked for Geico for 1 year 11 years ago at their Lakeland, Fla Center. Several thousand employees worked there. I found them a very difficult place to work, and I don't know how they are now. The monitoring for these call center jobs was beyond overkill, and the work atmosphere was on the junior high level. At least on the night shifts. I met some nice people there, but the work environment was so strick that the turnover was very high. I ended up leaving when my father suddenly died out of state, and they gave me a hard time with being off that week. I was allowed the standard 3 days off for a funeral but I needed the week. My parents lived 1500 miles away, and I needed to help my mother that week after the funeral with the house. I can't say I was surprised by Geico refusing the added time, since again the strict attitude there overwhelms many employees. So I resigned.

I wish anyone that works there all the best. As I said jobs can be tough to get these days. I just hope Geico has realized in these many years later. That people have families and things happen in life beyond our control. When you lose close relatives thru death and very suddenly. Well your in no mood or frame of mind to deal with a 3 day funeral rule. I thought it was beyond disrespectful to an employee, and Geico was not worth my time any longer.

[Bummer]

Unfortunately, the "horrific" work conditions described here are, more often than not, required and perpetuated by Super Lazy , Self Serving, First Person Singular Employees.

Just more examples of Lazy Worthless Employees expecting to be rewarded for Sub-Standard, "I'm Entitled To This Job" Performance.

My experience in a Call Center was exactly opposite and, after proving myself, turned out to be an extremely rewarding and lucrative position. Anything but a Sweat Shop or Dead End Job.

[tom4416]

GEICO faces a legal issue that many call centers don't - they are dealing with a highly regulated product (insurance) and any misstatement by a call center employees can have severe ramifications so yes, they listen in/record most conversations. Only a licensed agent can sell the actual insurance, the call center employee can only provide general information and referrals to the proper person based on insurance needs and state of residence.

I would hope no one takes a call center job as a career, it should be viewed as a stepping stone and while it's not particularly stimulating work, it's work with benefits. People today seem to think that the job should accommodate them rather than the other way around. People should be happy to have a job with advancement potential, not complaining about the number of breaks and the length of their lunch hour - sheesh.

Edit: Bummer kind of beat me to this and said it a bit more succinctly that I did

[LittleGirly]

Dear Bummer,
I wouldn't consider myself lazy or self serving or a worthless employee ever in my 35 yrs as an employee. In fact, I was promoted several times in my career but when you move as often as I did, I had to find work and fast. Sometimes, my promotions (especially being female) were overlooked and I had to start over at the bottom when I was hired into a company. A few were sweatshops of the American kind which is what I consider most of these call centers. Unfortunately, food, clothing and shelter were needs stronger than my pride and I did the work with kindness and a helpful attitude when I was employed. I am proud of those 10 yrs of call center employment and even served as a Help Desk Manager and then IT administrator while I finished my bachelor degree at age 45. The last position I held was managing 17,000 email boxes on a global network before I got married and moved overseas. You know what happens when you make assumptions about a post right? Your post displays the attitude I encountered over and over in the IT field (always by men) and why to this day, I will never ever work in that field again.

[Bummer]

Sorry, LG . . . no individual "finger pointing" here.

I was merely pointing out the need for such strict work rules originates with the majority of the employees, NOT the ambitious employees with decent work ethics who usually last more than a few months and are promoted and generously rewarded.

I could write a book on the outrageous and unethical BS actions, some downright shocking and some so ridiculous they were funny, I witnessed over the 7 plus years at a Call Center.

[Jukesgrrl]

When I first moved to Tucson. I remember reading about the great success of the Geico call center here. Apparently they had the best ratings (however one measures success in an insurance call center) of any customer service operations in the Geico corporation. Owner Warren Buffett arrived in person with great fanfare to thank the employees. Did they get promotions? Did they get raises? Did they get cash bonuses? No. Buffett arrived with Dairy Queen truck and the employees all got to choose an ice milk treat.