WEST AT HOME AGENTS West@home Terminated for No good reason, Internet

I started working for West@home in November 2009, This company was a " JOKE " from day one. But I needed some income, so I stuck with it, Until I received a call on 07/13/2010, telling me that I was terminated because I didn't handle a call in a professional manner. More on that later !, As a home agent, you are required to answer incoming calls for products ( i.e. Ab Doers, Rosetta Stone, Redi, Set, Go food Processor, Ninja Food Items, H2O & Shark Mops..UGlue, LipOzene, Time Life CD collections, etc..etc ) and services ( AARP, Health & Life Insurance Companies, Medical Supplies, etc..etc ) most of these are as advertised on TV....for the products, so in other words YOU MUST be a SALES Person, after getting all the pertinent information form the caller, you are then " required " to sell UPSELLS ( items to add to the original product that caller called in for. " This is REQUIRED to be read to caller VERBATIUM to the script, If caller says NO, then there is the "REBUTTALS "..ok after all that, then there are the APO ( Additional Product Offers ), these range from Monthly Entertainment Programs starting @ 24.95 PER Month, Insurance, and Magazines, these " MUST BE READ VERBATIUM or you will get DINGED and receive a written warning OR a PIN. ( not sure what PIN stands for ) Keep in mind these are ALL added at the end of the call and sometimes there are as many as 5-6 UPSELLS and then 3-5 APO's. These are all long written and long winded SCRIPTS that must be READ VERBATIUM, by this time the caller is frustrated and confused, But I believe that is what the companies are counting on. If the caller accepts any of these APO's then there is the additional LEAGAL " scripts that must be READ Verbatium..or Once again You will get written up.

As far as Hours, this is the BIGGEST JOKE, Good luck IF you can grab any hours to work, They use a Program called SPECTRUM, the company post the available hours when ever, NO set day or time, So you never know when a schedule will be available, Most of the hours I got was from " TRADE " other agents posting the hours they decided they did not want or could not work,  Apparently there were some agents that had a " BOT " working for them to get the hours when posted. Anyways the work time slots are in 30 minute increments. SO IF you get any hours, you may work only 30 mins at a time. I ended up working sporadically through out a day, anywhere from 1 - 7 hours a day. Also, you are paid MINIUM WAGE for your state, If you do get lucky to get a call that might be paying a commission, this is taken into consideration with your weekly quota and is counted as part of your minimum wage rate. In the 9 months I worked I got 2 calls where I received a  commission, what a " joke "

Then there are the DAILY STATS that IF you don't keep Up with, you again will receive a DING and PIN or be DE-Graded. I was fortunate enough to keep my status as a # 1, and then they keep stats on everything, time, conversations, sells, calls..etc and OH yea, ALL the calls are Monitored and Listened ". 

If a PAL listens to a call and doesn't like the way you handled it or didn't read a script Verbatim, you get dinged !

Speaking of PALS, another " Joke " if you have " any issues and need help, you are suppose to call a PAL, " Good Luck " with that, most don't know their a*s from their elbow and blow you off anyway they can, so you are pretty much left on your own and to figure it out.

As a home agent, there are NO BENEIFITS..health, 401k..vacation..etc.

Ok, back to my " TERMANATION " some  "old lady" called in to get information on BCBS Health Insurance, we are required to follow the script and to get, name, address, telephone numbers, email addresses, date of birth, what kind of insurance they are interested in and then " Transfer the call to a BCBS agent and required to wait for them to pick up the call, so you can sit on hold for up to 5 mins, once they answer, you are then required to give the BCBS agent all the caller's information.  Well, this " lady " did not want to furnish any information at all, no first name, no telephone #, no DOB...I was following the scripts and she started " Screaming and Yelling " at me, that she didn't want to give all this personal information and she didn't want to talk to anyone, just wanted the information to be sent to her in the mail.. as I was trying to explain to her that the information is required, she states to me to " SHOVE IT UP MY A** " this woman was extremely abusive and loud. I  had it with her and Yelled back at her, then hung up. Next day I received a call from a PAL and was terminated because I didn't handle the call in a professional manner. .....G' grief "  after NINE months on this job and ALL the GOOD CALLS, and GREAT STATS , after One bad call, I was Terminated, I could go on with other trails and trivia about this JOB. But My only advise would be, Unless you are THICK SKINNED, A GOOD SALES PERSON, NEED TO WORK FROM HOME, OR JUST NEED THE $$, PASS ON THIS COMPANY