Talk2Rep Watch out for this Company! Tamarac, Florida
Be very very careful if you go to work for this company! They are very disorganized and won't tell you the truth about what is going on. I applied to this company because I am a work at home mother and saw the opportunity to be able to work at a nonphone job doing chat. I went through their assessment and chat testing and passed all. Then did a week of training for their chat client. Me and others who were in the training class worked one day then the next morning we all get a call that the job was put on hold because they claim there was "security issues".
Mind you, we were not taking any credit or debit card information through the chat or asking for any personal customer information nor could we even see the customer's account. We were doing consultant sales where we were giving the customers recommendation for features. T2R did not have any meeting at all regarding any issues nor could they tell us when we would be getting back to work. So I was without money for 3 weeks and every time I would call they could not give me any information. So there was a week of unpaid training down the drain!
After I called numerous times to get to the bottom of what was happening, they finally let me work with their other client which was being in the cancellation department for a popular gym membership. The calls at times could be difficult, but I was happy to be able to work at $2 more an hour than the other client. Training was medicore but I had to learn alot from trial and error. After receiving 2 full checks, they then email me to tell me they were downsizing the program! WTH! So another let down from this company! During this time, they finally got the go ahead to start working for the chat client, but you want to know how I found out about it? Not from them emailing me to let me know but from a job forum I belong to where there were several new people saying they were getting interviewed for the same job! I had to call them to ask about if it was true! No consideration for the workers who had already went through training, they go and call new people! Sheesh!
So reluntantly, I go and work their chat client with no refresher training just one day of watching people that are already employed work the chat. For those looking for non phone jobs, this type of chat is not all it's cracked up to be. You can't even go to the bathroom when you need to, you must work 3 chats plus if you do not get enough sales you will be bumped down to minimum wage! My daughter, who also works for the company, got a bladder infection because she has had to sit so long without using the bathroom and when she did go they reprimanded her.
After alot of thinking, I decided to resign from this company because for one they treated you like an employee but you were considered a contractor with no benefits plus I was getting fed up with this company's bullshit!
Now, they have not even sent me my last check and when I called the receptionist couldn't even get the day straight of when my check was mailed. Here it is Christmas and I have practically no money to use for presents or bills! Called a 2nd time, another receptionist said the checks were put on hold! What! Hold for what!?? Then she says no one has any information about the checks. So I let her know that I'm sure they got their checks cause they work in the physical call center and they don't give a d**n about the work at home workers. Then another lady gets on the phone saying that I should watch what I say. Yeah right, I'm suppose to be all cheering and sugar plums and I'm sitting here 1 day before Christmas Eve with no money! She claimed I would get a call about my check but it is now 4:27pm est and no call or email!
For those thinking of working for this crazy a** company beware! Yeah you probably be good if you are working in the building but if you are a home worker be prepared to be left in the dark about things and treated like you are crap!
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Donna
Georgia,Talk2Rep has changed it's policies.
#4UPDATE Employee
Mon, June 16, 2014
I just wanted to give an update on the policies that the people in this report have complained about, which is mainly the sale/survey based comission style pay. As of a couple of months ago Talk2Rep has done away with that type of pay style and you now get paid a base hourly pay regardless of your sales or surveys. If you do happen to make more sales, the pay goes up, but you now are guaranteed pay. So for those looking to join Talk2Rep but are having second thoughts because of this report stating it is comission style pay, that is no longer true for the company. You will get paid a base hourly pay regardless of your sales and surveys.
Donna
Douglasville,Georgia,
Employee of Talk2Rep
#4UPDATE Employee
Mon, August 26, 2013
I was genuinely shocked when I read both of the reports on Talk2Rep. I am a home chat agent and I have been with them for the past 8 months and I have never had any issues with them. When you first get accepted to work with Talk2Rep, they explain the pay scale which is based on the amount of sales you make before you even start training. You even have to sign a document stating you understand the pay scale, so I'm not sure how you wouldn't have been informed about that unless that is something new they have started to do.
I started to work the day after my 2 weeks of unpaid training ended. They start you with 2 chats and then after you get the hang of things about a week later they move you up to three threes. As for the breaks, that part puzzles me because we are allowed to take breaks whenever we want. All you do is let your Point Of Contact know and set yourself to away. There is no set breaks, but you are allowed to take breaks at your leisure as long as your away percentage stays below 15%. They set it up so you can take at least 2 10 minute breaks a day per a 6 hour shift if you wish without it effecting your time or pay.
They do drop you down to minimum wage if you do not make any sales, but the Point of Contact/Team lead will get with you well beore your pay period is due to end if they believe you are not meeting your goal.
I have only had one issue with my pay from them. They shorted me 5.75 hours, but when I let them know they immediately issued a check to me that I received in 2 days for that balance. My pay has never arrived late, I get it direct deposited at 3:00am every other Friday morning.
Like I said, I'm not sure if maybe the company has changed policies since these two workers have left and I'm not doubting either of their stories. I am simply stating the conditions of the company, how they treat their employees and how it is ran now. They are very organized now and always have at least 3 point of Contacts during the day and two at night so no agent is ever alone should they have trouble. The POC's monitor chats as well to chime in with help advice or tips if they see a struggling agent. We also have monthly workshops that help go over everything to keep everyone fresh and up to date and if new equipment or procedures come out we have hour long training for those.
Talk2Rep really is a great company to work for. I absolutely love working here and wouldn't change it for the world!
Steven K Kovic
USAIt's not just the at-home workers.
#4UPDATE EX-employee responds
Thu, May 26, 2011
I was just released from one of their sales programs. I didn't work from home. I was at their actual call center.
I was hired for what ultimately turned out to be a part time position although it was supposed to be 32 hours at first. The training class I came in with had 20 people in it. At the time I left there were 8 left. The rest of the others had either been dismissed or quit.
The original schedule was supposed to be M-F 9-2 and 12-6 on Saturday. There was supposed to be an 8 hour day of training unpaid. That turned out to be split over the course of two days and a little more on the third day.
First week we're informed that although the base pay is supposed to be $10.00 per hour, the pay will be bumped down to minimum wage if we're not meeting the sales quota after a certain point. Fairly reasonable. This is theoretically supposed to be a performance based job. However we will get paid the standard base pay for the first week.
However, on the day before we receive our first check, we are informed that this information was in fact faulty and that the pay bump to minimum wage was in effect from the beginning. In addition, those of us that needed headsets had the $32.00 fee deducted from that check.
On Saturday most of us show up. Sales are hard to make so around 4:30 almost everyone (except for a few that have good sales) is sent home. Another hit to the paycheck.
By this point most of the new hires have realized that pretty much everything we were told at the beginning was in fact false. Part of the blame for the incorrect information was shifted on to our supervisor on the grounds that she's "new here". False. She's been with the company for a few years now. Nice way to shift blame for passing false information on to her.
Then come the second Friday as we are waiitng for our checks, a few of us are informed that we are "not the right fit" and sent packing permanently. When one asks what the problem was and asks if they could have some time to improve it, they're informed that the first week or two is basically the probationary period although they didn't inform one of that at the beginning.
Basically Talk2rep pulled a bait and switch.
I went in thinking that this place would be a vast improvement over previous call cneter jobs I've held. Instead I discover quickly that Talk2re is like most outsource call centers: a stockyard. A source of cheap labor for the likes of its clients and a company that seeks to look for any exucse not to pay people.
If you're thinking of working for Talk2rep, here's one word of advice: DON'T! Seek other options even in this still creaky economy. Find a company that's upfront about pay and probationary periods.