I’ve been loyal to Sky TV for a number of years now, but their behaviour over the last 12 months has left a really bad taste in my mouth. My recent “leaving Sky” feature has detailed a lot of this – including the regular price-hikes and poor or misleading retention deals.
Now, though, they seem to have gone further.
In the midst of the cornonavirus crisis, the company has identified itself and staff as “key workers” and are demanding that staff turn up to work as normal…
At this difficult time it's critical that we're able to keep people connected, informed & online to access the latest news & information. Our contact centres will be prioritising vulnerable customers. Everyone’s safety is paramount & we will follow social distancing guidelines.
— Sky Corporate (@SkyCorporate) March 24, 2020
Sky, of course, do more than just TV, and they’re leaning heavily on their “connectivity credentials” here by telling people that it’s essential that they keep phones and internet feeds working.
That, though, isn’t the full story. It seems that few Sky staff are remote working. Although some Sky staff are given the ability, the big Sky call centres remain crammed full of workers. Meanwhile, Sky TV engineers are still attending homes to setup or upgrade satellite TV. Meanwhile, BT Openreach (the people who do a lot of phone connections here in the UK) are advising their engineers to avoid entering customer premises.
Twitter account “@UKSaintsSinners”, which highlights companies doing the right and wrong thing in this crisis, has got hold of a letter which has been given to “Sky key workers” which tells them to continue working as normal..
This despite a rumoured coronavirus case in the Sky Dunfermline Contact Centre and many Sky workers reporting a lack of distancing measures, sanitizer or soap.
We're not done yet, @SkyUK.
1/ Retention, product upselling and back-office staff classed as key workers;
2/ No social distancing measures in your offices;
3/ Diabetic and pregnant staff *still* forced to work.But you thought a shiny piece of paper will do? 🤬 pic.twitter.com/kcCSzvu7Mh
— Britain’s Saints & Sinners (@UKSaintsSinners) March 25, 2020
As you can see here, Sky have twisted the term “key worker” to become “Sky key worker” and have then, according to the tweets we’re seeing, classified retention and sales team as such. The wives, husbands and relatives of Sky TV engineers are adding their concerns all over social media. Here’s just some of them…
https://twitter.com/Angelslap/status/1242733352060362753
My partner is also an engineer. I’m 6 months pregnant.
I’m with you my anxiety is through the roof.
Obviously their engineers lives aren’t important!— Jade (@J16073459) March 25, 2020
https://twitter.com/bmalinovsky/status/1242585605923635200
Same… I have 4 children at home, the youngest being 5 months. What’s the point in us all being told to stay home when my husband has to go and upgrade people’s bloody sky boxes and put us all at risk!!
— Sherry Brain (@Sherrytovey) March 25, 2020