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Thank you for taking the time to share your opinions about your experience at OnPath. We are disappointed to hear that you did not have a positive experience while you were here.
As much as we appreciate your feedback, it is difficult to respond to some of the statements you’ve made because there is no context provided. It is difficult to respond to your claim that all of Management, Program Leaders and Human Resources are liars when we do not know what issue or issues you feel that all of these people have lied about. Our suspicion is that you weren’t lied to and it is more of a case where something was not properly communicated. One of the things we have implemented recently to combat any miscommunications and improve our transparency is a completely anonymous online suggestion box, where employees can pose suggestions, questions, comments and any type of feedback that is on their minds. In turn, we post our responses to the suggestions to all OnPath employees, to minimize any miscommunications.
Working in a call centre, in close quarters to a lot of people, illnesses can spread fairly quickly. This is true of call centres and any other open office environment. We did go through a bad bout of absenteeism due to illness over the Winter, which is to be expected, but since then, our absenteeism rate due to illness is less than 5%.
Your accusation regarding bullying and harassment is a serious one and it is an issue we take quite seriously. We have a process in place for workplace investigations related to anything that violates our code of conduct, which includes workplace violence and harassment. Employees always have a point of contact that they can speak to regarding any claims of violence and harassment, whether it is their Program Leader, Program Account Manager, Director of Operations, Human Resources or Vice-President. It is critical that incidences where workplace violence and harassment may have occurred be brought to the attention of the appropriate people so that proper steps can be taken.
Regarding the way our employees are dressed, our dress code is casual, with some restrictions. We choose not to impose too many restrictions on our employee’s freedom to wear what they are comfortable in. This does mean that some employees are quite casual, in jeans and t-shirts. And some employees come in wearing a suit, shirt & tie every day. The only time we ask employees to dress up more formally is when we have clients coming to visit; in those cases we ask our employees to be dressed business casual.
In response to your comment regarding employees staying until they get laid off or they quit, we acknowledge that these things can be disheartening. Regarding the layoffs, it is unfortunately the reality of doing business. Just recently, Microsoft and Intel announced a series of layoffs. OnPath is not immune from having to make those types of difficult decisions. We conducted a series of Town Halls for our employees to voice any questions or concerns they had about the layoffs. We also sent a company-wide email to explain why layoffs were happening on some programs. Like most companies that experience layoffs, it is not a continuing trend, but a temporary correction in employee staffing. Regarding people quitting, all companies experience employees who resign, whether it is an entry level position or an executive level position. With OnPath being a call centre, we anticipate that there will be a certain amount of turnover that may be higher than other industries. Also, employee tenure has shrunk dramatically in all industries over the last decade. It’s quite rare today to see employees stay with the same employer for more than 5 years. Here at OnPath, we have a handful of employees who have been here for more than 5 years and a few who are approaching 10 years, which is just about unheard of in the call centre industry. Our hope is that when someone does resign from OnPath, that we played a part in helping them get to the next stage in their career – whether it was through our formal training & development, informal learning from colleagues, the social atmosphere we encourage or any other aspect of working life at OnPath.
Yes, we do have a no scent policy, which is not unique to OnPath. This is quickly becoming the standard for all employers. With the number of people who experience negative reactions to scented hygiene products, we do not feel it is unreasonable to have a no scent policy. If there are ever situations where an employee’s personal body odour is impacting others, we always encourage employees to be able to speak with each other. If they are not comfortable having that type of conversation with their colleague, they can bring it to their Manager’s attention and their Manager will have that discussion with the employee.
Thank you again for taking the time to share your thoughts and opinions of what it was like for you to work at OnPath.
