Trends and lifestyles have changed rapidly recently. Along with this change, how a person wants to work naturally changes. Today, we no longer look at our work only as a source of income to satisfy our needs. On the contrary, people now have to find a balance between their personal lives and their responsibilities at work. They want to be financially independent, but at the same time, they need to have free time that they can enjoy. For these reasons, many employees in our country opt for shift work. In this article, we explain what shift work entails, and several shift workers talk about the advantages of shift work.
Discover in this blog the experience of maib Contact Center employees.
Pavel Martinov is 26 years old and has been working at maib Contact Center for 9 months. The young man has worked both day and night shifts throughout this period.
"I worked practically every shift, from midnight to 8:00 in the morning, from 8:00 a.m. to 5: 00 p.m., 1:00p.m. to 10:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. to midnight. This flexible schedule gives me a chance to have more activities and manage my time more efficiently," says Pavel.
Thanks to his flexible working hours, the employee also studies at the Free International University of Moldova in the Faculty of Law. Moreover, Pavel has also enrolled in driving school and regularly attends driving lessons.
"The shifts allow for the management of other activities and foster progress in everyday life. For me, the shift that starts at 8:00 in the morning is the most convenient. When I have to deal with more issues around town, another shift works for me. In August and early September, I only worked the day shift. So far, two months, I have worked the night shift," says Pavel.
Working in the maib Contact Center also offers Cătălina State the opportunity to study simultaneously at the Faculty of Economics and Accounting at ULIM. The 20-year-old is responsible for taking calls from customers.
We have a flexible work schedule, which is very good. Once the Contact Center operates 24 hours a day, you can set your working hours according to your needs. I work 8 hours a day. One hour is for the lunch break. I mostly work day shifts. There have been shifts where I worked from 3 p.m. to midnight. I also study at the university part-time. Managing your daily activities and work is advantageous," says Cătălina.
And the shift work schedule is advantageous for Daniel Bulachi, a 22-year-old young man.
"I like it. It's an excellent start to my career. I've gained a lot of knowledge in finance. I work according to the schedule set by the managers, but the working hours are flexible, sometimes I start work at 8:00 a.m. sometimes at 9:00 a.m. Some days I can work from 1:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. I haven't worked night shifts yet," says Daniel.
And Maria Babcenco, a 22-year-old young woman, has worked in the maib Contact Center for over two years. She is now responsible for processing customer inquiries and providing support, including information, online. But in the past, she was responsible for receiving customer calls and working in shifts for nine months.
"For now, my working hours are Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm. I have previously worked in shifts, the latest until 9 pm. But in those cases, I would start work at 12:00 a.m or 1:00 p.m. It's a flexible work schedule for people doing their studies. It's advantageous. Shift work gives you a lot of experience," says Maria.
The team leader establishes the employees' work schedule monthly, following discussions with them. "We do statistics and analysis. The shifts are constantly changing so that people don't get bored and that they have the opportunity to deal with personal issues. A man can't always work the same shift. If an employee needs to change shifts, we agree and try to reach a common point to suit everyone. It's also important that the shifts are staffed, and that the employee can work out their plans. The schedule changes every month. Before we create it, we gather all the requests from employees about their work availability. We consult with them each time," says Ecaterina Braga, team leader, maib customer support.
Employees can opt for either a full-time or part-time program. "Shifts start at 7:00 a.m. or 7:30 a.m. and accordingly, 8 hours full-time and 6 hours part-time are worked. If an employee works one night and one day, respectively, they will have two days off to rest. Night shifts are additionally paid from 10:00 p.m. Also from this time, we offer them taxi vouchers, so they can go home safely with the transport organised by the bank", says Natalia Rabei, maib HR specialist.
In addition to being able to choose an individual work schedule, employees receive monthly bonuses and are paid quarterly for overtime worked.
"The performance bonus is given at the end of each month in addition to the salary. This bonus is set based on several criteria, depending on the monthly test, number of calls, and rate of calls solved. This performance bonus can be up to 150%. I also worked in this team, and even after three months, I exceeded the monthly working norm by up to 150%. I was more motivated by the bonus than my salary to go above and beyond every month. In addition, after half a year, there is professional growth for the employees", adds Natalia Rabei.
Maib representatives say they are looking for employees willing to work shifts. "We in the Contact Center have vacancies for both the support team, which works night and day shifts, and the telesales team, which deals with selling loans over the phone. There are 42 employees in the customer support team and 26 in the telesales team. In total, we expect 79 positions filled," points out Natalia Rabei, maib HR specialist.
So how satisfied a person is with their work influences their personal life. If they are well motivated, not exposed to stressful situations and have enough free time, their quality of life and performance will improve.
