From Black-and-White to Shades of Grey: Research of a Call Centre Employment

Call centres are a growing phenomenon worldwide. These have prompted extensive research especially from those concerned with the labour processes and employment practices used in these workplaces. Much of the call centre literature is based on comparative research, attempting to analyse the employment environment and making claims about call centre work in general. However, the classification of call centres is not simple and straightforward and the mainly comparative nature of the call centre research is problematic because of this complexity. Many of the comparative studies do not take in the wider perspectives of the organisation, the location, the sector or the division of labour. This paper presents findings from six New Zealand case studies chosen to represent the diversity of the New Zealand call centre sector. The analysis of the findings shows mixed evidence regarding employment outcomes but clearly demonstrates that work in call centres can be very positive for women who work there.