Kassandra Cordova ORGL 3332 – KV2 September 29, 2023

Voices Behind the Call: Unveiling Exploitation in Telecommunication Labor

The telecommunication agents that serve the Health and Human Services Commission

are the threshold between the public and the state. Day after day we open the call lines to

mediate the public’s cries for help, with every call just as desperate as the last. We are tasked

with providing case status and information to the public on behalf of HHSC, and we are kept in

line by a highly structured and monitored environment. As the first point of contact for frustrated

clients, we are the ones that bear the emotional weight that emits from their distress, we are the

bearers of bad news, and the flesh shields of HHSC. Amidst this, we are instructed to separate

ourselves, lack empathy, be brief and be gone, on to the next call. We are recruited like cattle,

every 12 weeks there are new representatives emerging from training, unexpecting and unaware

of the tolls they are yet to encounter. Every second of our workday counted, and we are rewarded

for our efforts with scrutiny, low pay, dictating call metrics, and mandatory over-time. Today we

will examine the exploitation of HHSC’s telecommunication labor force, the practices in play

that allow the exploitation to perpetuate and its direct effect on our call agents. Furthermore, we

will explore the fallacies that circulate in the industry that contribute to the acceptance of

exploitation, and the efforts that can be made by corporations in the same industry to deter the

mistreatment and manipulation of marginalized labor forces.

Recent developments, like COVID-19, have led organizations like HHSC to evolve and

adapt telecommunication positions to become remote work. While remote work can offer

flexibility and work-life balance, it is also accompanied by various forms of worker exploitation.

HHSC uses monitoring tools to excessively track its remote workers, invading privacy and

manifesting a tense work setting for all agents. We are given a 30-minute non-paid lunch, in
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which we are also expected to take any necessary bathroom breaks. Daily schedules are created

for us, for which we are expected to maintain 93% adherence to, regular deviation from this

schedule can result in disciplinary action or even termination. Remote work allows HHSC to tap

into our own resources such as light and internet, while also taking advantage of global labor

market rates. Through remote work, HHSC can hire workers from regions with lower living

costs and pay us less than our in-house counterparts. Additionally, the specific resource

requirements needed to be hired also limit the labor pool, “low-income and non-white Americans

are most likely to lack access to the tools necessary to participate in [a remote work position],

meaning this shift [towards remote work] may exacerbate income inequality and hamper

economic mobility,” (Reisenwitz). For an entity that is designed to identify and assist the less

fortunate, it is preserved by the efforts of marginalized agents working for low pay, with no

actual authority over the benefits being issued, and yet assuming all the responsibility of the

actions taken by HHSC. We are taken advantage of in this sense, under the premise that, “the

needs of society are considered more important than the needs of the individual,” (Social

Problems, 12.1).

HHSC employs various tactics to maintain control and minimize resistance from

telecommunication agents. Some of us agents have created communication channels outside of

our employment network, and it is in these groups that we vocalize our shared frustration over

the manipulation of our labor. It has become evident to us, that HHSC has successfully disguised

the prevalence of exploitation through the partial disclosure of work environment details.

Limited information about certain aspects of the job were not properly explained to us, and the

longer we continue in our employment, the more tedious the terms of employment become. We
Kassandra Cordova ORGL 3332 – KV2 September 29, 2023

are coaxed into employment with the promise of bonuses and room for growth, but upon

placement into our position we are then made aware of the obstacles that stand in our way, such

as meeting impossible metrics and the required acceptance of exploitation. The transition to

remote work has isolated employees, and inadvertently discouraged intra-employee

communication, “this shift to remote work has left employees working from home while feeling

uncertain about their workplace rights… [permitting] employers have the upper hand in dictating

working conditions,” (Green). This separation of our labor force is a subtle division of our unity

and strength, and through our isolation, HHSC is further capable of sustaining control of our

labor. Additionally, we are gaslighted by our superiors and are constantly receiving demoralizing

emails claiming that if certain stats and metrics are not met then “WE will be on the other end of

that phone [seeking assistance],” and “ATLEAST we have a job,”. This psychological attack is

yet another tactic utilized to encourage the acceptance of subpar working conditions and pay. We

are made to believe that things could be worse, and fear of an unknown alternative subjugates

our will to advocate for ourselves.

To deter exploitation of telecommunication agents by entities like HHSC, and protect

workers’ rights, especially regarding fair compensation and closing the income inequality gap,

serval changes can be advocated for. These changes can be implemented at various levels,

including government regulations, industry practices, and corporate policies. Governments

should enact and enforce fair wage laws that ensure remote workers, like telecommunication

agents, are paid equitably, regardless of their geographic location or employment region.

Industry associations can work on developing standardized contracts that clearly define terms

and conditions, ensuring that employees are aware of their rights and obligations. A secondary
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industry practice to promote workers’ rights would be to establish independent third-party audits,

in order to assess and report on the working conditions and compensation practices of remote

work organizations. Furthermore, corporations should implement transparent compensation

structures that consider the cost of living in different regions, as well as publish annual

transparency reports detailing worker compensation and progress in reducing income inequality

within the organization. Ultimately, “because there is relatively little government regulation in

[our industry] …any improvement in work…must stem from social reforms,” (Social Problems,

12.4). By implementing these changes, HHSC and organizations alike can collectively work to

deter exploitation in the industry and promote fair compensation.

In conclusion, telecommunication agents serving organizations like the Health and

Human Services Commission find themselves at the frontline, bridging the gap between the

public and the state. Remote work has brought about significant changes in the landscape of

employment at HHSC. While remote work does offer the promise of flexibility and work-life

balance, it has also unveiled various forms of exploitation, both subtle and overt. We, the agents,

are all subjected to intense monitoring, a lack of autonomy over our schedules, and discrepancies

in compensation based on geographic regions. The implementation of tactics like partial

disclosure, isolation of employees, and gaslighting, make it challenging for us to collectively

advocate for our rights. In order to combat this exploitation and safeguard workers’ rights, HHSC

must prioritize compliance with labor standards and compensation transparency.

Telecommunication agents, unions, advocacy groups, and organizations must collaborate to

advocate for fair treatment, just compensation, and improved working conditions. Only through

these concerted efforts can we hope to deter the exploitation that persists in the
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telecommunication labor force and create a more equitable and humane working environment for

all.

Works Cited

Green, Ken. “Remote Work Challenges and How Unions Can Help.” UnionTrack®, 28 Sept.

2020, uniontrack.com/blog/remote-work-challenges.

Reisenwitz, Cathy, and Cathy Reisenwitz is the former Head of Content at Clockwise. She has

covered business software for six years and has been published in Newsweek. “WFH Will

Deepen Income Inequality, Unless We Do This: Clockwise.” RSS, 22 Nov. 2022,

www.getclockwise.com/blog/wfh-income-inequality#:~:text=However%2C

%20widespread%20remote%20work%20may,required%20to%20work%20fully

%20remote.

Social Problems. “Chapter 12: Work and the Economy.” Social Problems, University of

Minnesota Libraries Publishing edition, 2015. This edition adapted from a work originally

produced in 2010 by a publisher who has requested that it not receive attribution., 25 Mar.

2016, open.lib.umn.edu/socialproblems/part/chapter-12-work-and-the-economy/.