Perth call centre staff have language problems, says Telstra chief David Thodey

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Perth call centre staff have language problems, says Telstra chief David Thodey

By David Ramli

The next time you get mad at Telstra's call centre staff for having poor English, there is a 50 per cent chance you should aim your rage at Perth and not Mumbai or Manila.

Telstra chief executive David Thodey told an Australian Institute of Company Directors lunch in Sydney on Wednesday that he often received complaints from irate customers about overseas call centres and their apparent failure to understand English.

Telstra chief executive David Thodey.

Telstra chief executive David Thodey.Credit: Ben Rushton

But further investigations showed Western Australians were just as bad as call centre staff in the Philippines and India.

"Interestingly, when we get criticism about so-called foreign contact centres, 50 per cent of the time the people are in Perth, because we're a multicultural society and often the criticism is around language or communications skills," he said.

"And I say, I don't care where these contact centres are, we must have a high standard. Good communications, good English and [they must] know the company."

Telstra has previously said more than 50 per cent of complaints about language problems were about Australian workers, but this is the first time it has identified the main culprit city.

It operates call centres across Australia in cities such as Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, plus regional locations.

Mr Thodey said in August he did not think call centre jobs would exist in Australia in five years, due to the internet and smartphone applications.

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At the event on Wednesday, Mr Thodey said his earlier comments may have been overenthusiastic, but he stood by the sentiment.

"I do fundamentally see that contact centres will decline in the future," he said. "More people are going online and they prefer it as a better experience."

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