I’ve read that headline 4 times now and still don’t get it, whats a ‘migrants man’? Am I missing some kinda in thing going on here, is it a play on a song or something? I’m confused.
IMMIGRANTS who can barely speak English will be used to man the phones at emergency swine flu call centres, it was revealed yesterday.
As ministers prepare to launch a virus hotline this week, staff at the centres last night laid bare the chaos behind the preparations.
They said hundreds of people with few English language skills and no medical training will join the 1,500 team taking calls from the public.
Paid the minimum wage of just under £6 an hour, one worker branded the selection process and the lack of training “a complete joke”.
An insider involved in recruiting staff claimed hundreds of immigrants were being signed up to offer a swine flu diagnosis to the public because the posts had to be filled quickly.
The source said they would only be given very brief training, adding: “If it wasn’t for a serious reason, it would be so funny. It’s a nightmare. A lot of immigrants, hundreds of them, are applying who can hardly talk any English but because we’re desperate to find a lot of people in such a short amount of time we’re taking them on.
“As long as they can provide proof of their date of birth, they can get through the recruitment process. When I speak to them on the phone they can barely understand what I’m saying and even those who can speak English are very difficult to understand.
“It seems we’re just going to recruit as many as possible to reach the target of 1,500 before the end of this week.
“The saddest and silliest aspect of the recruitment process is that the Job Centres say they can’t help because they’ve not got enough people on their books with experience of manning telephone lines.”
Another worker, who did not want to be named but is employed at the Teleperformance call centre in Ashby-De-La-Zouch, Leics, said staff – believed to be earning just £5.80 per hour – were being given just one day’s training and had no medical background.
“The saddest and silliest aspect of the recruitment process is that the Job Centres say they can’t help because they’ve not got enough people on their books with experience of manning telephone lines.”
The simple reason is we don’t, the three most common areas of job shortage in the southwest all fall into manual labour and I bet that’s the case across the country, so much for a middle class recession it isn’t, it’s like every other recession the manual labour is hit the hardest.
As for medical traning it’s diagnosing off the bloody computer, I bet it’s the same way in which most customer facing public sectors work, have any of these journalist hacks used NHS Direct?
It’s the perfect Express tag. Again, just a matter of implanting a perception of them taking all the jobs and putting lives at risk. On the say so of a few anon anuses (who in reality would be seen as pointless public sector workees if it were not for the dirty foreigner angle).
I must admit, having tried to negotiate through NHS Direct over this flu, it’s a bit confusing as the advice conflicted with the local GP.
At least if people have access to a human (using the PC software) there should be scope for further referrals.
It just panders to people who hate call centres abroad and assume that anyone speaking with a slight Indian lilt is sitting in Mumbai.
LMAO are you serious? The only thing worse than a swine flu outbreak is migrants helping to stop it? And I love the migrants picture of people cueing up in Cali, I’m sure there are Americans, French and Spanish people who will be helping. lol.
You could argue that Swine Flu was brought to the UK by middle-class tourists who’d been on holiday to Mexico. So I suppose we’ll be seeing migrants writing articles about disease-riddled accountants from Dorset spreading illness around the country? Well, maybe not.
Surely those people who troop off to the costas, cost Spanish taxpayers money in healthcare and other things and read their copy of the express, tutting at all those migrants coming into Britain. *Pauses for breath* Surely they are also migrants too?
What’s more if you log onto the Express’s web site and do a search for this story you will find a link entitled “DESMOND LOSES HIGH COURT LIBEL CASE”. But if you click onto that link you find this:- “The article you are looking for does not exist. It may have been deleted.”
Every time I think the Express can’t sink any lower…
Surely every single one will be able to speak English.
They ‘might’ be dealing with callers who don’t speak English perhaps? Even so it’s all wrong and an ‘outrage’!
I’ve read that headline 4 times now and still don’t get it, whats a ‘migrants man’? Am I missing some kinda in thing going on here, is it a play on a song or something? I’m confused.
That story in full:
IMMIGRANTS who can barely speak English will be used to man the phones at emergency swine flu call centres, it was revealed yesterday.
As ministers prepare to launch a virus hotline this week, staff at the centres last night laid bare the chaos behind the preparations.
They said hundreds of people with few English language skills and no medical training will join the 1,500 team taking calls from the public.
Paid the minimum wage of just under £6 an hour, one worker branded the selection process and the lack of training “a complete joke”.
An insider involved in recruiting staff claimed hundreds of immigrants were being signed up to offer a swine flu diagnosis to the public because the posts had to be filled quickly.
The source said they would only be given very brief training, adding: “If it wasn’t for a serious reason, it would be so funny. It’s a nightmare. A lot of immigrants, hundreds of them, are applying who can hardly talk any English but because we’re desperate to find a lot of people in such a short amount of time we’re taking them on.
“As long as they can provide proof of their date of birth, they can get through the recruitment process. When I speak to them on the phone they can barely understand what I’m saying and even those who can speak English are very difficult to understand.
“It seems we’re just going to recruit as many as possible to reach the target of 1,500 before the end of this week.
“The saddest and silliest aspect of the recruitment process is that the Job Centres say they can’t help because they’ve not got enough people on their books with experience of manning telephone lines.”
Another worker, who did not want to be named but is employed at the Teleperformance call centre in Ashby-De-La-Zouch, Leics, said staff – believed to be earning just £5.80 per hour – were being given just one day’s training and had no medical background.
“The saddest and silliest aspect of the recruitment process is that the Job Centres say they can’t help because they’ve not got enough people on their books with experience of manning telephone lines.”
The simple reason is we don’t, the three most common areas of job shortage in the southwest all fall into manual labour and I bet that’s the case across the country, so much for a middle class recession it isn’t, it’s like every other recession the manual labour is hit the hardest.
As for medical traning it’s diagnosing off the bloody computer, I bet it’s the same way in which most customer facing public sectors work, have any of these journalist hacks used NHS Direct?
It’s the perfect Express tag. Again, just a matter of implanting a perception of them taking all the jobs and putting lives at risk. On the say so of a few anon anuses (who in reality would be seen as pointless public sector workees if it were not for the dirty foreigner angle).
I must admit, having tried to negotiate through NHS Direct over this flu, it’s a bit confusing as the advice conflicted with the local GP.
At least if people have access to a human (using the PC software) there should be scope for further referrals.
It just panders to people who hate call centres abroad and assume that anyone speaking with a slight Indian lilt is sitting in Mumbai.
Hence, what they mean by migrant is non-white.
“A lot of immigrants, hundreds of them, are applying ”
Well what more do you need?
That proves it then, I bet they all get a job.
LMAO are you serious? The only thing worse than a swine flu outbreak is migrants helping to stop it? And I love the migrants picture of people cueing up in Cali, I’m sure there are Americans, French and Spanish people who will be helping. lol.
Headline should read migrants filling roles of lazy indigenous people who would rather stay at home drinking Stella and watching Jeremy Kyle.
LEGAL immigrants want to work shocker.
Migrants coming over here getting everything on a plate/If only they worked/Migrants coming over here taking our jobs
This headline made me cringe so much when I saw it in the newsagents
You could argue that Swine Flu was brought to the UK by middle-class tourists who’d been on holiday to Mexico. So I suppose we’ll be seeing migrants writing articles about disease-riddled accountants from Dorset spreading illness around the country? Well, maybe not.
That’s a lovely picture of Gerrard!
Surely those people who troop off to the costas, cost Spanish taxpayers money in healthcare and other things and read their copy of the express, tutting at all those migrants coming into Britain. *Pauses for breath* Surely they are also migrants too?
Even though it was the only paper on offer I drew the line at this edition of the Express.
Now if only they could run
“Migrants on Swine Flu Helpline killed Diana and caused collapse in house prices”
it would be perfect !
I wonder how tommorows Express is going to cover Desmonds loss in the High Court for libel?
What do you expect for 25p?
I’m sure it will be as ‘thorough’ as always…………
I cheered when I heard the news!
It looks as though Desmond is living in a parallel universe where he thinks he did not lose the libel case:-
http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/115945/Daily-Express-owner-I-set-record-straight-
@DBC “Have your say is not available for this story”. Odd that.
What’s more if you log onto the Express’s web site and do a search for this story you will find a link entitled “DESMOND LOSES HIGH COURT LIBEL CASE”. But if you click onto that link you find this:- “The article you are looking for does not exist. It may have been deleted.”