Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
CONCERNS AS CALL CENTRE CLOSES
News branded‘ blow’ to community
Contact centre firm Teleperformance is to close its Airdrie site later this year.
The base at Victoria Park is being immediately mothballed, “with a view to closing at the end of 2021” following an estates review by the company.
Employees will instead be offered the options of working from home or relocating to one of the firm’s three facilities in Glasgow city centre.
Officials say the decision has been reached as four out of every five staff members have been working from home for the past year following the coronavirus lockdown, and that “there are not expected to be any job losses”.
However, local politicians, including Alex Neil MSP, pictured, have called the news “a real blow to the local economy” and are seeking renewed investment in the town and in local jobs.
Teleperformance also this
week denied a media report suggesting webcams were to be installed to monitor productivity and breaks taken by remote workers, saying: “we absolutely trust them to do their jobs in a professional manner; at no time will we be using the tools to spy on our staff.”
A statement insisted video technology would be used only for team meetings and training, and to ensure “adequate security” surrounding the processing of client data through planned webcam contact.
Established in 1999, the Rochsolloch site previously accommodated up to 900 workers – with the company describing the centre on their website as “the largest employer in North Lanarkshire”.
Teleperformance said in a statement: “Following a review of our estate options, we can confirm that our site at Victoria Park in Airdrie is being mothballed, with a view to closing at the end of 2021.
“At present, 80 per cent of people normally based here are working at home and have been since March 2020.
“There are not expected to be any job losses as a result of this and we will provide all people based at Airdrie with the choice either to work at home, if that is possible, or relocate to one of our Glasgow locations.”
Staff provide customer service, technical support and order processing for firms.
Teleperformance opened a “new state-of-the-art site ”at City Park in Glasgow last year and add: “there are no plans to close any other sites in Scotland.”
MSP Alex Neil said: “although the company claims there will be no job losses, mothballing the Airdrie site will have an effect on our locality. Teleperformance employed many hundreds of people at its peak and the loss of their wages being spent locally is devastating.
“This announcement demands a proper response from the Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise. Airdrie has become the forgotten town [and] no real effort has been made to bring new jobs and industry to this area; that has to change.
“Road and rail connections, along with the building of a new bypass and a new Monklands Hospital, make Airdrie a very attractive place to locate a business; we must exploit these opportunities to the full and use all the tools at our disposal to bring in much-needed new jobs.”
He and party colleague Neil Gray – the town’s MP until last week – have written to economy secretary Fiona Hyslop.
They say: “airdrie is an ideal location for new business investment. However, we seem to get very little support or attention from Scottish Enterprise. We need your help to rebuild the economy and strongly urge you to set up an initiative designed to exploit business opportunities in Airdrie.”
Council leader Jim Logue, whose ward includes the Teleperformance site, said: “Although there are to be no job losses, it is still a blow to the recovery of the local economy. The council has ambitious plans for all towns across North Lanarkshire and stands ready to bring as much investment to Airdrie as possible.”