Ben Bull, Columnist –
Doesn’t anybody answer the phone anymore? Immigration Canada just hung up on me after dangling me on the line for 20 minutes:
“Press 1 for English” – beep!
“Press 2 if you are concerned by the situation in Europe.”
Of course I’m concerned by the situation in Europe! Why do you think I want to live here?
When they eventually shuffled me to the back of the right line, an automated voice told me:
“I’m sorry – we are too busy to take your call.” Click.
I can take a rejection – I’ve been blanked before. Usually by a real human, like a restaurant server when I’m trying to get the cheque. Hey, why am I waving my arms around like I’m drowning?…But being ghosted by a robot is so cold.
Toronto’s 311 service answers my calls. They were refreshingly prompt at picking up last fall when I called to report a blocked stop sign at the bottom of my street. They even seemed genuinely interested when I told them someone could get hurt and they needed to hurry up and fix it. They assured me they would add it to their queue and call me back “in due course.”
But the phone never rang. Six months later the stop sign is still hiding behind a tree.
I called 911 a couple of years back when I saw a bloke jogging along the GO rail tracks behind my house. My heart pounded as I waited for the call to be picked up, and then – Click… beeeep! What? I was put on hold.
When someone eventually answered they muttered a few half-heartedly “Uh-huhs” and an “Oh really?” after which I was transferred to the hotline for the TTC.
I said the GO tracks! Not the TTC!
Last October I reached out to my local councillor on behalf of my neighbourhood association – about two hundred or so people – to ask about rejigging the parking rules on my street. This was time sensitive and I needed a record of our conversation, so I decided to communicate by email.
And after all, you can’t hang up on an email, right?
Hmm…Here’s how that communication went down:
– Email +4 days. My councillor responds, assigning the enquiry to a staffer.
– E-mail + 20 days – There’s no answer, so I send a request for an update.
– Email +26 days – Staffer replies, apologizing for the delay.
– Email + 33 days – No answer. I send an update request.
– Email + 46 days – I check my spam folder and send another update request.
– Email + 71 days – I check my spam folder, smell my breathe and send another update request.
– E-mail +75 days – Staffer responds, addressing a different parking enquiry. I reply, the same day, restating my original request.
– Email + 92 days – I send a note to my councillor: What did I do wrong? Was it something I said?
– Email + 108 days – Staffer responds, thanking me for sharing my concerns.
I don’t take any of these communication kerfuffles personally. My calls are always constructive and respectful. But it feels like I’m talking into the abyss.
Politicians are forever telling us they want to hear our concerns, but when we reach out, the line goes dead.
It will be election time soon – times two – and those same politicians will be so desperate to speak to us they’ll be banging on our doors. But we want to be heard all the time, not just when you want to keep your job.
I know everyone is busy, but if your job is to serve your community then you need to learn how to listen. How can you expect me to be engaged if you are always engaged?
