| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 07/08/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 48 |
| Copyright: Other |
Being on the receiving end
It might not be something that happens everyday but if you were confronted by an angry and abusive client, would you know exactly how to deal with the situation? Linsey McNeill reports
THOSE working in the travel industry are increasingly likely to become the victim of an attack, either verbal or physical, by a disgruntled or disorderly client.The trade union TSSA, which represents 3,000 travel industry employees, said more and more disgruntled clients were resorting to violent or abusive behaviour.
TSSA spokesman Neil Tester said those working on the travel industry front line, including sales consultants, overseas reps and airline cabin crew, were the most vulnerable to attack.
“Only a small minority of clients resort to abuse, but this is an important issue for our members,” said Tester.
“Overseas reps have to deal with clients who might be unhappy with a certain aspect of their holiday, and travel agents sometimes get angry clients coming back into their shops to complain about their holiday.”
Travel companies claim they are doing everything they can to protect their staff but Tester said there is always more than can be done to ensure their safety.
“There are some good examples where companies, like Thomas Cook, for instance, have really invested in staff training and they take this issue very seriously.
“Other companies have a more hit-and-miss approach and very often this means waiting for an incident to happen before working out how to deal with it.”
One of the biggest problems for employees dealing with an aggressive client is they risk being held accountable by their employers if they accidentally mishandle the situation, said Tester.
“Sometimes staff face disciplinary action after they have been involved in a situation like this,” he added.
“If this happens to anyone, I would urge them to get in touch with us.”
Travel companies do not deny that their staff, most of whom are young women, occasionally have to deal with abusive clients and the firms claimed this was a matter they take very seriously.
A spokeswoman for JMC Holidays said: “Our training programme for overseas reps includes a session on how to look after themselves, where they are told what to do if they are faced with a disorderly, abusive or intoxicated guest.”
The best advice is to remain calm and polite at all times in order not to cause further aggravation and to suggest they return to discuss the matter later.
If it looks as though the situation may get out of hand, the rep should leave. If the client becomes physical, they should call the police.
“A lot of our reps carry mobiles or pagers and they should call for help if a situation is getting difficult,” said the JMC spokeswoman.
n TSSA urges industry employees who are concerned their company is not taking this issue seriously to get in touch. It also runs a helpline for members facing disciplinary action and require representation. For help, call 0800 328 2673.
Boiling up: some clients wait until they get home before complaining
Telling off:overseas reps are among those most vulnerable to a verbal or physical attack
Lunn Poly guidelines
n Always use a calm and steady tone, which should encourage the customer to adopt a morecommunicative manner.
n Try to get the customer to sit down.
n Listen to the customer’s complaint.
n Apologise that the customer is upset and disappointed.
n Summarise back to the customer what isunderstood to be their problem and explain what action will be taken.
n Tell the customer when they can expect to hear from the agency again.
n If a customer is particularly abusive, staff should not try to deal with them alone. Call the shop manager and contact the police immediately if a client becomes aggressive.
n Staff who have dealt with a tricky customer should inform their manager and/or their head office immediately so they can be prepared for a formal complaint.