Safe and healthy call centres
Howard Fidderman reviews the HSE's revised advice on health and safety in call centres.
In one of its more rapid revisions, the HSE has updated the advice it gives to local authority (LA) officers who enforce health and safety standards in call centres. The HSE's definition of a call centre - "a work environment in which the main business is conducted via the telephone while simultaneously using display screen equipment" - means the advice, like its predecessor, affects not just traditional call centres, but also parts of organisations such as internal helplines. Such a wide definition will include up to 5,000 call centres - some 2% of the UK's workforce. The document will be useful to call centre managers, health and safety staff, safety representatives, occupational health specialists, human resource personnel and call-centre workers.
The main changes
The HSE first issued advice on call centres in late 1999 (Call-centre working practices), following a small-scale survey of the industry by the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL), an HSE agency. The 1999 advice foreshadowed a larger HSL study, which has resulted in the new document. The second study was based on questionnaires returned by 1,130 workers (a 38% response rate) in 37 call centres run by 20 companies, and interviews with 37 call centre employees. The revised advice - LA circular 94/1(rev)1 - contains new or amended sections on:
the length and frequency of breaks that call handlers should take;
dealing with verbal abuse;
consultation with employees and their representatives (which permeates throughout the revised advice);
specific Regulations and guidance;
the risks that an employer should consider in its assessment;
when call handlers should be provided with information on risks and control measures;
alleged noise hazards; and
stress.
The circular essentially applies existing health and safety law to call centres. Duties arise under the HSW Act and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, and many other sets of Regulations, including those on display screen equipment (DSE), the workplace, working time, manual handling and first aid. The substance of this application was covered in our January 2000 feature on the earlier circular and remains unchanged. In this article, we concentrate on the changes made by the HSE and the refinements in the circular that are particularly relevant to call centres. As the HSE notes: "Although the fundamental elements of a call handler's job are the same as a typical computer-based office job, the close combination of these elements results in a unique job often of an intensive nature."
THE WORKPLACE
The circular covers all aspects of the call centre working environment. It stresses the importance of proper control of the call centre environment, particularly where work is undertaken 24 hours a day for seven days of the week (24/7). Good practice includes a clear and easy reporting procedure for unacceptable environmental conditions, a prompt and serious response to complaints and feedback on investigations and decisions. Disinfectant wipes should be available to call handlers to clean their equipment, and the cleaning regime for workstation equipment should be particularly strict where there is hotdesking.
In terms of work equipment, the circular advises employers to look at:
specialist equipment - where a risk assessment has identified an individual need for particular equipment, for example a footrest, the employer must assign the item of equipment to the worker personally if he or she moves desks;
maintenance - involving a simple procedure for employees to report defects, and immediate investigation by the employer and removal of faulty equipment. Employers should have a good stock of replacement and alternative items; and
storage - call centre workers often complained about a lack of storage space for personal and work-related items. The circular advises employers to provide individuals with sufficient lockable personal storage facilities. They should also be aware of manual handling and tripping hazards.
Display screen equipment
The circular describes a call handler as "an individual whose job requires them to spend a significant proportion of their working time responding to calls on the telephone whilst simultaneously using DSE." As such, call handlers are "users" of DSE for the purposes of the Health and Safety (DSE) Regulations 1992. They may also be at a higher risk from DSE-related hazards - notably musculoskeletal disorders - than typical office workers; call centre work is intensive and call handlers do not usually have the same opportunities to take breaks from DSE work because DSE and the phone are intrinsic to the job.
Employers should therefore ensure that their risk assessments satisfy the DSE Regulations. Employers need only conduct a single assessment where groups of workstations are in "very similar situations", but they must still conduct a DSE assessment of each individual call handler to identify personal requirements. Specific advice on the DSE aspects of hotdesking - in general, "not a popular working practice" - is restricted to the need to consult with employees or their representatives.
The provision of training and information should relate to the risks identified in the assessment. Call handlers should be trained in how to minimise the risks themselves, although this does not absolve the employer of any of its duties, and in the use of equipment in an industry with "fast developing" technology and software. The circular recommends that employers display a short checklist on screens to prompt users to adjust their workstation before starting work, and that they allow sufficient time to make the adjustments.
WORKING ARRANGEMENTS
Employers should look at their call handlers' task variety, degree of control over the workplace and workload, and where handlers are unsure as to what is expected of them.
Breaks from work are important for the eyes, muscles, hearing, voice and in preventing stress. There are no precise legal requirements on the frequency and duration of breaks in call centres, but the study suggests a break of five minutes an hour or 15 minutes every two hours (excluding lunch breaks). The circular advises that call handlers also be allowed to take a break after a particularly stressful call. The advice emphasises that a break from DSE work does not mean a break from work. If a change of activity is not possible, then a break from the workstation should be scheduled.
Employers should ensure that workers are trained to understand the importance of taking appropriate breaks (which includes not emailing friends during a DSE break). They should also consult call handlers about when they would like to take their breaks.
Call handlers are increasingly reporting problems of verbal abuse - employers should ensure that staff are trained to be competent to take calls and are aware of any new product. This will reduce the likelihood of customers becoming frustrated. Induction training should cover the main reasons for verbal abuse and how to handle them. This will include procedures for passing calls to experienced colleagues or supervisors, or terminating the call. The circular urges that the company policy on violence contains a section on verbal abuse. Employers should allow a person who has received verbal abuse time to recover and discuss it with a colleague or supervisor.
To combat reports of hoarse and lost voices, the HSE suggests employers:
break opening greeting scripts into shorter segments, allowing the handler a brief break while the caller responds;
allow handlers to drink at their workstations, encouraging the consumption of water or caffeine-free drinks (caffeine is a diuretic);
encourage call handlers - at the workstation and during breaks - to stretch their necks and shoulders so as to relieve tension. Prompts can be put onto the computer; and
assign staff with colds to non-telephone speaking duties.
Electronic performance monitoring
The circular notes that electronic performance monitoring (EPM) is "an almost universal practice in call centres" and can be used as a basis for training, improving customer service and determining performance-related pay. EPM can be quantitative (statistics) and qualitative (listening in).
In the HSL studies, call handlers highlighted unrealistic and inflexible targets as a major source of stress. The circular notes that "monitored employees have reported higher levels of stress than unmonitored employees", but that the relationship between monitoring and stress is not straightforward. Given that monitoring can identify good as well as poor performance, the circular does not oppose monitoring, but urges that teamleaders are trained to give feedback in a constructive, not punitive, manner, and on a one-to-one, private basis. Employers should consult call handlers about how often they would like feedback, and allow them a mechanism for commenting on EPM. There should also be a clear and consistent set of criteria against which qualitative monitoring is marked.
NOISE
The circular tries to allay fears of general hearing problems in call centres. After the TUC and the Royal National Institute for Deaf People had claimed in 1999 that one in three call handlers feared exposure to noise was damaging their hearing, the HSE commissioned an HSL study of 150 call handlers in 15 call centres. The results, says the HSE, "indicate that the risk of hearing damage from using a headset is extremely low. Although call handlers may occasionally experience high noise levels, these are usually of very short duration." Overall daily personal noise exposure is therefore unlikely to exceed the 85dB(A) action level in the Noise at Work Regulations 1989. Employers should carry out hearing checks where daily personal noise exposure is at least 90dB(A).
The HSE disputes any need for noise-cancelling microphones. The HSL study recorded a mean background noise level of 62dB(A), and the HSE notes that: "Unless background noise levels increase to 65-70dB(A), noise-cancelling microphones are of little benefit to the majority of call centres, and conventional voice tubes or boom microphones are adequate." The HSE advises that call handlers be trained to position the microphone in the optimum position to avoid feedback. Carpet, chairs with soft seats and padded screens can all be effective noise absorbers; in addition, special absorbent material can be used in the building, often in ceilings.
Headsets
Headsets, amplifiers and/or turrets should be fitted with volume controls, and call handlers trained in their use. Handlers should also be reminded to turn the volume back down after having turned it up for a quiet caller. Some sets return the level to a default setting after each call; other systems involve an on-screen reminder; a third example involves a button on the keyboard that reduced the headset noise immediately to minimum when pressed.
Individuals should be given their own headset. There is, says the HSE, no difference in the impact on hearing of one or two earpieces; call handlers should be able to choose. If headsets are pooled, each handler should be issued with their own foam ear pads and voice tubes. All staff should be prompted to adjust heatsets for comfort and be trained in headset hygiene, including cleaning the voice tube, which can become blocked with food and dust. Employers should ensure there is a system for checking and maintaining or replacing sets, and that there is a stock of new or sterile headsets and voice tubes.
Acoustic shock
Most headsets manufactured since 1991 have an acoustic shock limiter that should prevent the transmission of all noise above 118dB(A). This has not, however, stopped some call handlers reporting that they have received an "acoustic shock". The HSE believes that such shocks - a "sudden increase in high-frequency noise transmitted through a headset" - are usually caused by interference on the telephone line. While the noise may shock or startle call handlers, the circular insists that "it should not cause hearing damage as assessed by conventional methods". But it adds that "emerging evidence suggests that exposure to these acoustic incidents, at levels much lower than is traditionally associated with hearing damage, is giving rise to other symptoms. Further work on acoustic shock is ongoing." Managers, it advises, should both encourage call handlers to report all such incidents and record all reports.
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The circular's advice on tackling stress in call centres is based on the seven risk categories set out in last year's HSE's stress guide for managers (Unison slams HSE over stress advice). Culture: ensure adequate communication and consultation with staff; staff welfare must be a priority; there should be no rapid return to work after illness.
Demands: check for work overload (see performance monitoring, training and breaks in the main text of the article) and work underload (avoid repetitive and boring work by scheduling alternative work such as coaching new staff, developing promotional material); ensure capability and capacity of call handler, and that targets are achievable; check the physical environment (see main text) and the psychosocial environment (verbal abuse, ability to take holidays, adequate notice of shift changes etc).
Control: call handlers have little control over when they take a call, with qualitative targets dictating length and content of call. Involve handlers when making decisions about targets.
Relationships: the pressure of meeting targets can threaten relationships and introduce rivalries. Group targets may help, as will an effective policy on bullying and stress.
Change: clear communication and consultation is needed to allay fears that may otherwise be caused by the rapid expansion of the industry, mergers, takeovers and technological change.
Role: role "conflict" can arise where target times do not allow appropriate handling of a call or where the handler is required to make an unnecessary "sales pitch". Role "ambiguity" arises where handlers are unclear about what is expected of them.
Support, training and factors unique to the individual: managers should ensure that there is constructive feedback on performance, emotional support after distressing calls, training away from desk in product knowledge etc, refresher training, and a balance between work and home life. |
1Advice regarding call centre working practices", Local authority circular 94/1(rev), www.hse.gov.uk/lau , free.
