Sources familiar with the plans reported that Apple had contracted with Volt Information Sciences to staff the call center, which in turn had arranged with 500 employees to begin training sessions on providing iPhone support.
Two weeks ago, Volt recruiters sent out notices to trainees saying, "we received notice from Apple that the iPhone Training Class you were hired for has been pushed back from Sep. 29 to Monday, Oct. 13."
As the call center plans failed to materialize, employees were notified by email last week that "the Volt Colorado Springs Call Center project you were hired for has been cancelled. The project was cancelled due to Economic conditions and improved quality of the product resulting in a reduced volume to the Support lines."
A source speaking to AppleInsider said the call center positions were "clearly temporary (3 to 9 months), but did hold the possibility of becoming a permanent facility with direct Apple employment."
An article in the Colorado Springs Gazette reported that the facility scheduled for the training was located in an office building on Garden of the Gods Road, owned by Verizon Communications. A reader commenting on the report noted that the stretch of road was "like a corporate burial ground."
The shift in plans is also a hardship upon the people Volt lined up to staff the center. One employee cited by the paper said that Volt had told him, "We're trying to recover from this mess and we don't have 500 jobs for these people."
20 Comments
Well, good for Apple, bad for Colorado Springs and the 500 people who were going to be employed
Good news. I don't need 500 people with subpar social skills weakening the image of a company because they aren't competent. Improve your products and you run leaner giving you more money to hire more talent to develop new products for other market segments.
maybe they can all get jobs with the churches and religious organizations in colorado springs. with the economy going the way it is, i expect them to be busy. assuming that they're really interested in people's well-being, and not a tax-free profit scam.
"And thaaaaaaat's my life!"
Good news. I don't need 500 people with subpar social skills weakening the image of a company because they aren't competent. Improve your products and you run leaner giving you more money to hire more talent to develop new products for other market segments.
Yes, better to have call centers in India, where everyone is named Bob and Mary, the weather is always "nice," and they don't comprehend English.
What an asinine comment