Call centre to recruit 400 staff as virus enquiry surge accelerates demand

Gemma Harding

Call centre, CallCare, is doubling its workforce and creating 400 jobs to keep pace with increased demand.

The customer service specialist, based in Salford, is expanding its workforce across its contact centres in Yorkshire, Manchester and Liverpool to handle a range of customer services from COVID-19 helplines to online shopping enquiries.

CallCare has created and filled 100 new jobs since March and will add a further 300 by August 2021.

Most roles will be in Manchester with some also in Shipley, West Yorkshire and Liverpool.

The 100% staff increase is largely due to the impacts of COVID-19, which has accelerated the need for organisations to outsource customer service lines on account of reductions in workforces.

According to CallCare, the pandemic has also contributed to the extension of traditional working hours, meaning businesses require further support to help handle the influx of ‘off peak’ customer enquiries.

CallCare revealed it has doubled its booked revenue to £30m, as lockdown and consumer uncertainty from COVID-19 has led to a surge in customer enquiries and more businesses outsourcing customer service to reduce risk.

The pandemic has also compelled firms to bring customer service operations back on shore because of call centres in other countries being shut down due to differences in coronavirus legislation.

In the UK, employees within call centres have keyworker status allowing them to continue supporting businesses as usual.

CallCare has also attributed its significant rise in revenue to its ongoing partnership with Public Health England, where it is handling COVID-19 response lines in healthcare and education.

It has also expanded its customer service work for existing clients including Dreamland, a quality mattress and bedding manufacturer, and ChipsAway, a mobile car paintwork repair business.

So far, recruitment has attracted candidates from a more unusual supply pool, including former airline cabin crew and friends and family of employees made redundant, and sectors that struggled or ceased operations during lockdown such as hospitality and travel.

Gemma Harding, head of client services at CallCare, said: “The pandemic has forced many organisations to outsource to maintain operations and mitigate the impacts on the customer.

“Since March we have seen a seismic shift to towards using customer experience centres and many companies are realising the benefits.

“Expanding our workforce means that, as more and more companies turn to outsourcing as the ‘go to’ for customer service, we will be ready to meet their requirements.

“With mass redundancies across the UK as a result of the pandemic, we’re really pleased to be able to offer permanent career opportunities in an industry that’s booming.”

Part of The Call Centre Group, Call Care also operates subsidiaries including Your Business Voice and The Contact People. The organisation offers five key inbound customer service solutions – Ecommerce, FM, health, professional services, and SME.

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