Work Advice: Readers on call center bathroom breaks

Reader: I wanted to give a perspective as someone who has worked in call centers for six years and in call center management for two different cable companies.

In phone-based customer service, start, stop, lunch and break times must be prescheduled. If the system didn't work like that, there would be dramatic understaffing, long wait times and customers unable to reach someone to assist them.

The "phone stats" the reader described would be schedule compliance or "adherence." This means actual time on the phone actively taking calls. In most companies, someone 20 to 30 minutes out of adherence could still meet the goal.

I noticed the individual never mentioned reaching out to Human Resources, but his or her problem is a typical call center HR issue. With a doctor's note, whatever accommodation that could make the employee successful will likely be made. Desks can be moved closer to restrooms, and breaks can be split up to minimize time out of adherence. I had a worker with diabetes who took frequent breaks to use the bathroom, take medicine or eat, and by managing her time, she was never out of adherence.

I hope I was able to put this in some perspective. Call center work isn't for everyone; some people don't have the mind-set to do it.

A: Wait. You're saying my cable company's phone support could actually be worse?

Seriously, thank you for the background. I have to admire anyone who can thrive in that kind of regimented environment, speaking as someone who would wash out by lunchtime on Day One.

Reader: I worked for a call center. It was what I imagine working for a sweatshop would be like. You had to raise your hand to go to the bathroom. They usually gave you the OK but with comments such as "Can't you hold it till your break?" or "You've already been" or "You'd better not be gone for more than X minutes, or you'll be docked." There was also a string of emails regarding excessive bathroom breaks.

If you didn't have IBS [irritable bowel syndrome] before, you certainly might have it after working there. Every morning, my stomach was in knots. I ended up on the toilet three or four times before leaving for work.

I finally decided it wasn't worth my health and well-being, so I left. My stomach issues ended immediately after.

Karla: I'm not sure I'd go so far as comparing your workplace to the often fatally exploitative conditions in a literal sweatshop. But a bathroom bureaucracy is still far from many workers' ideal. When it affects your health, I agree that's your cue to seek a better fit elsewhere.

• Miller has written for and edited tax publications for 16 years, most recently for the accounting firm KPMG's Washington National Tax office. You can find her on Twitter, @KarlaAtWork.