A new meaning to annoying call center calls

Mobily's women employees harassed :: Arab News

An interesting way to express the highest respect for women. Quoting:

JEDDAH, 20 August 2005 — A telephone and Internet campaign complaining about women in the workplace has prompted communications provider Mobily to shut its women’s call center and consider having separate telephone numbers for men’s and women’s services.

Despite the efforts of the Ministry of Labor to create more job opportunities for women in the private sector, conservatives, displeased by working women, launched a campaign of harassment against the women, phoning the call center numbers to accuse them of improper behavior. The Internet also was used, with certain websites alleging the mixing of men and women.

The newly established Etihad Etisalat telecommunication company (Mobily) opened a section for women in its call centers for customer service, the decision was hailed as a positive example of the private sector’s move toward employing women and providing new opportunities for them. Many women applied and were happy with their jobs, but that changed soon after they began receiving harassment calls eventually pushing the company to close the women’s section.

“We were so happy with the job and the workplace. It was not at all like what was being said on some of those Internet sites claiming that we were mixing with men and talking casually with them all the time,” a female employee at Mobily told Arab News. She said that the call center for women is divided by a partition from the men’s section, but the fact that they were answering inquiry calls by men irritated some conservative community members.

“We were getting harassment calls and hearing all kinds of insults by male callers, but we dealt with them professionally, and, as much as it hurt our feelings, we still wanted to continue with the job,” she said.