6319 replies to this topic

[Nparker]

Newsflash - all of the food comes out of the same galley...

Not a newsflash - I know there's only one galley. Even more reason for the clam chowder to make an appearance in the PB.

[Bingo]

Clam chowder is a regular item on the lunch and dinner menu. I get it every time I'm in the buffet. 

 

http://www.bcferries...ificbuffet.html

[Nparker]

Clam chowder is a regular item on the lunch and dinner menu...

But is it New England or Manhattan?

[Bingo]

The chowd

 

But is it New England or Manhattan?

 

The chowder is made right here in BC down in the engine rooms using a top secret recipe. 

[Mike K.]

I worked UVic’s donations call centre for a season while a student there. If you think solving billing issues is hard, try convincing people to part with their money for nearly no reason at all, lol.

What made the job bearable was the fact that the managers kept the environment jovial, we all celebrated the big wins and poo-poo’d the grumpy call takers. Once you feel like you’re part of a team and stop taking things personally you can take a million calls and they’ll fly right over your head.

[VicHockeyFan]

What exactly is a donations call centre?  People call in and you try to get them to give money?  I don't get it, why would they call you?

[Mike K.]

You call them.

[rjag]

hehe we get UVic calls all the time for Alumni support....gets annoying after a while, but we dont blame the caller, not their fault

[Mike K.]

The trick is to tell the callers your child has left the country. That gets them crossed off the list. And if you're the one they're calling for, the trick is to say you are not the person they are trying to reach. 

 

They're pretty good about that sort of thing and will take you off the list. Some overzealous kid on a winning streak might pull a stunt and call crossed out names thinking "he" can squeeze some money out of people but that's rare and if you ask to speak to a a manager they'll get a slap on the wrist (which to a millennial will mean taking a week off school and going into the woods to think about life, so it is a big deal).

[VicHockeyFan]

Oh, I see.  I've telemarketed professionally when I sold home improvements.  You are doing one job on the street, your job sign is on the customer's lawn, now call the other 15 people on that street nearby.  It's remarkably effective.  Even more so in strata apartments or townhouse complexes, sometimes you can turn one sale into 10.

 

Anyway, back to BCF.  Did they cancel some more yesterday?  I overheard a FedEx driver at the coffee shop this morning saying he has nothing to do for the first time in 10 years, no freight came over last night (or this morning).

Edited by VicHockeyFan, 15 November 2017 - 08:24 AM.

[lanforod]

^ wouldn't that be a Seaspan issue more than BCF? Either way, it was plenty windy, so I wouldn't be surprised.

[shoeflack]

But is it New England or Manhattan?

 

Manhattan...Manhattan every single time. The orange, watery slosh. The incomparable junk for us true chowder lovers. I feel like an animal each time I eat that stuff on board. Yet I do, every single time. I'm so sorry, chowder gods! 

 

I'm with ya Nparker. I might wet my pants if BC Ferries ever decided to serve a hearty New England clam chowder.

[shoeflack]

Anyway, back to BCF.  Did they cancel some more yesterday?  I overheard a FedEx driver at the coffee shop this morning saying he has nothing to do for the first time in 10 years, no freight came over last night (or this morning).

 

The Tsawwassen to Duke run was cancelled and then turned into a Horseshoe Bay to Duke run last night. So I imagine a lot of trucks got caught in that crossfire.

[VicHockeyFan]

So, just to add to my never calling BCF in my life... I have never had a bowl of clam chowder in my life, New England, Manhattan, or any.  Never.  Nor have I ever had an oyster.  Of course, I never had pizza until I was 14.  I also have not ordered dessert at a restaurant since 1992.  I can probably go on, what thread are we in?

Edited by VicHockeyFan, 15 November 2017 - 09:02 AM.

[Jason-L]

So, just to add to my never calling BCF in my life... I have never had a bowl of clam chowder in my life, New England, Manhattan, or any.  Never.  Nor have I ever had an oyster.  Of course, I never had pizza until I was 14.  I also have not ordered dessert at a restaurant since 1992.  I can probably go on, what thread are we in?

With all the jobs you seem to have had, I'm surprised one of them wasn't chowdah tastah.

[tjv]

Well in spite of actually working for a US-base private service provider our call center staff is BCGEU and makes the equivalent wage; don't know BCF's volume's but I can tell you our teams take 6000 calls daily, on average.

 

Although to some people those dollars may sound exorbitant I can tell you with authority as someone who has set up, directed and managed customer call centers of up to 700 seats, most people complaining about the wage would at the same time be wetting themselves having to deal with those kind of call volumes, angry and frustrated callers, not to mention strict adherence to contracted Service Levels.

 

I've made 6-figures in my contact center management roles and I can tell you with certainty I couldn't do the front line role and keep my wits - not even close. I have huge respect for anyone up to that challenge because I can tell you those folks earn every penny doing what for the most part is a thankless job. And at BCF I know for a fact their CC staff, unlike our org, works all kinds of oddball shifts including back to backs, late into the evenings, weekends and holidays. 

I am pretty sure the kid at the pizza shop has a large volume of calls to deal with as well as angry and frustrated callers too.  Now when you order your pizza I'm sure you are telling everyone I want everyone who makes and delivers you pizza to make $23+/hr  plus full benefits and to adjust your price accordingly right?

 

You don't dare shop at non union stores, immediately put any made in China, Vietnam, India item etc back on the shelf and only purchase good quality Union made items.  If the seamstress, etc isn't making top wages you don't buy it right?  You never eat out either because I don't know of any restaurant that pays a minimum of $23/hr

 

Again, at those wages I am not surprised at the cost of a ferry trip

[Mike K.]

Meanwhile former doctors, bank managers and engineers who have immigrated to this country are scrubbing toilets and changing bedsheets for minimum wage, and they're pretty darned happy to have the employment.

 

Perception is everything.

[AllseeingEye]

I am pretty sure the kid at the pizza shop has a large volume of calls to deal with as well as angry and frustrated callers too.  Now when you order your pizza I'm sure you are telling everyone I want everyone who makes and delivers you pizza to make $23+/hr  plus full benefits and to adjust your price accordingly right?

 

You don't dare shop at non union stores, immediately put any made in China, Vietnam, India item etc back on the shelf and only purchase good quality Union made items.  If the seamstress, etc isn't making top wages you don't buy it right?  You never eat out either because I don't know of any restaurant that pays a minimum of $23/hr

 

Again, at those wages I am not surprised at the cost of a ferry trip

I'm fairly certain the kid taking calls at the pizza shop, and his employer, aren't contractually bound to adhere to rigid service levels that if not met can cost his firm multiple thousands or millions of dollars in penalties, and in a worse case scenario lose his job altogether under said circumstances once the contract isn't renewed.

 

And although I don't work for BCF I suspect rather than targeting a few dozen CSR's making $23/hr you might start with the gold plated benefits and retirements packages of some 4000+ union members and perks like "free" ferry rides. Or the prohibitively expensive advertising campaigns mounted by what is after all a virtual monopoly. Those BC Ferries ads that adorned the side boards of Rogers Place for years for instance cost one hell of a lot more than a few call center reps.....

[VicHockeyFan]

BCF will lose the ferry contract if they miss targets?  Who will the government hire instead?

[AllseeingEye]

Was referring to our firm among many others in this city and elsewhere that take calls on behalf of a client - the BCG in this case - with built in 'guarantees' that "X" service level will be met - or you lose the contract. For heaven sake VHF spend less time imbibing at the Taphouse and try to keep up...