VISIT OBAMBI.com FOR THE LATEST NEWS!
Forward by Herb Stamper
I want to ask each of you to consider doing the following when you are talking on the phone to any US customer service representative that is based in a foreign country (like India ). I have done this twice and it works! Any time you call an 800 number (for a credit card, banking, charter communications, health insurance, insurance, you name it) and you are transferred to a representative (like in India), please consider doing the following:
After you connect and you realize that the customer service representative is not from the USA (you can always ask if you are not sure about the accent), please very politely (very politely – this is not about trashing other cultures) say, “I’d like to speak to a customer service representative in the United States of America .” The rep might suggest talking to his/her manager, but, again, politely say, “Thank you, but I’d like to speak to a customer service representative in the USA .” YOU WILL BE IMMEDIATELY CONNECTED to a rep in the USA . It only takes less than one minute to have your call re- directed to the USA . Tonight when I got redirected to a USA rep, I asked again to make sure – and yes, she was from Fort Lauderdale .
Imagine if tomorrow, every US citizen who has to make such a call and then requests a US rep, imagine how that would ultimately impact the number of US jobs that would need to be created ASAP. Imagine what would happen if every US citizen insisted on talking to only US phone reps from this day on.
If I tell 10 people to consider this and you tell 10 people to consider doing this – see what I mean…it becomes an exercise in viral marketing 101.
Remember – the goal here is to restore jobs back here at home – not to be abrupt or rude to a foreign phone rep. If you agree, please tell 10 people you know and tell them to tell 10 people they know….etc…etc…
What a great idea. Tweeted.
A very good idea. Thanx Herbert!
thank you thank you my frustration level went down when i had pricelines indian and got an american
snopes sez it’s FALSE
Sorry to say that is totally BOGUS and has been circling the Internet for approx. 3+years now with an assortment of different twists on it.
There are no laws, federal or otherwise which require anyone be transferred from a foreign customer service center to one in the USA. Some of the corporations do not have customer service centers in the USA.
However, in 2009 Representative Jason Altmire, Democrat from PA introduced legislation referred to as “Call Center Consumer’s Right to Know Act [HR. 3721] to Congress. It was then referred to the House subcommittee and tabled. That proposed legislation was directed at restricting the use of foreign call centers in an effort to eliminate transfer of more jobs out of the USA and into foreign countries. Only two Republicans co-sponsored HR. 3721; Walter Jones Repub. NC and Tim Murphy Repub. PA.
Again in 2010, a similar issue was once again broached. Sen. Charles Schumer Dem. from NY announced he would be introducing legislations requiring US callers to be informed when being transferred to a foreign country and also place a 25 cent per call excise tax on such a call. To date, Senator Schumer still has not introduced any such bill.
In the meantime, a few US companies have established their own policy and procedures directing call center operators transfer calls back to the USA at customer’s request.
Now then, just try to find a US company that does that. None so far as I know. Unless you ask the answering operator point blank just where they are located you are not going to find out. I have personally never had anyone be forthcoming in divulging that information of their own accord.
not accurate
Ok, Ok, I can honestly say that I just tried this and it worked. I called the 800 number for my Sallie Mae Student Loan. I asked for a customer service rep in the United States. The rep I had transferred me to her manager. I requested a person in the United States once again. They did transfer me, but I had to wait 10 minutes on hold before a sweet American named Tonya helped me. She answered me that she was in Wilkes-Barre PA. She asked me why I’d asked for an American Customer service rep, and I told her it was to save American jobs. She thanked me for doing that. This is real, I made the call on Monday, September 26, 2011. I can’t be sure it really was in the United States, but it was a woman with an american Accent. Tonight, (9-27-11), I called to cancel my Internet Provider Netzero. I got a woman with an Indian Accent. I asked for a customer service rep in the United States and she got a bit testy and transferred me to a person with an American accent. It may not be law, but I’m demanding it now with every call and it seems to be working for me.
This does not work with Barnes and Noble. I have had nothing but trouble with my problem and their tech support. Everything I asked to speak to someone in the US I was denied and was told they (someone in the Philippines) could help me. They couldn’t even pronounce my name much less help me with my problem.
Must I be logged in to comment?
Can you please tell me the Public Law number or the date the legislation was signed by President Obama, or perhaps the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) where I can find the details of this law?
SNOPES SAYS THIS IS NOT TRUE. I TOO WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHERE I CAN FIND DETAILS OF THIS LAW BEFORE I SEND IT ON AND IT NOT BE TRUE
IS THIS TRUE? IF NOT LETS MAKE IT A REALITY!
ALTHOUGH its not true, there is no law. There are SOME COMPANIES that will comply with the request IF they have call centers here. Never hurts to ask.
There’s no law, but if a company has US and foreign call centers they’ll likely have an internal policy in place that requires foreign reps to transfer to US reps upon request. Chase bank does and even has an option where you can set a preference on your account to always speak with an US rep when you call in(note you have to verify your account information via the automated system for it to work)
I’m sure it’s not true. Didn’t even check. We have big government, but even IT is not going to go THAT far. Businesses have the right to hire, fire, and locate anywhere they please.
I don’t like big government, but I also don’t like our jobs going overseas, and although I may ‘date’ other nationalities (don’t have to speak perfect English to be social, lol), if you are trying to ‘walk’ me through something like computer fixes or talk to me about my repairs you are working on, you better speak FLUENT English. Had the same problem in college with a foreign TA trying to teach me ALGEBRA. I hate Algebra, lol!
I don’t know if it works, but most people have a misconception that if they reach a person with accent that person must be in India or Philipines, when they are mostly in U.S. Yes, I do work in a call center in Seattle, and I do have an accent because I speak German, English, and Spanish, however people should think better before giving a dirty comment about culture.