Call Center Game Costs Developer His Job

[Karloff]

Call Center Game Costs Developer His Job


The Canadian Tax Authorities descended upon game maker Gallant like a ton of bricks.

Many people are frustrated by their jobs. David S. Gallant, former call center worker - aka numb meat popsicle - for the Canada Revenue Authority, took his frustrations one step further, and made a game, I Get This Call Every Day. When his bosses found out, Gallant got canned.

It came all the way from the top. "The Minister [National Revenue Minister, Gail Shea] considers this type of conduct offensive and completely unacceptable," said an official spokesman to The Star. [http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/01/29/tax_agency_employee_creates_online_game_to_vent_his_frustration_with_taxpayers.html] "The Minister has asked the Commissioner (of Revenue, Andrew Treusch) to investigate and take any and all necessary corrective action. The Minister has asked the CRA to investigate urgently to ensure no confidential taxpayer information was compromised."

So Shea has no sense of humor whatsoever - perhaps that isn't one of the attributes a tax enforcer needs - and Gallant is out of work. However he's not out of luck; sales of his call center game have gone through the roof. "I have an incredible opportunity now," Gallant Tweeted [https://twitter.com/davidsgallant/status/296479921927254016], "and I have received a massive outpouring of support. I am so thankful."

If you want to have a shot at living Gallant's life, in game form, go here [http://davidsgallant.com/story.html].

Source: David S. Gallant [http://www.davidsgallant.com/igtced.html]


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[SomeLameStuff]

Well, I know the feeling about having a job you don't like. Kudos to him about doing something about it I suppose.

 

[Zombie_Moogle]

Gotta love the modern workforce.

"One of our employees hasn't completely merged with his desk chair?! He must be removed before this scourge spreads!"

I'm gonna buy his game. No idea if it's any good, but this guy deserves support

 

[Kopikatsu]

No thank you, I already worked in customer service. Can't imagine a call center is much better.

 

[fix-the-spade]

Wonder if there's a wrongful dismissal case there. Unless he specifically named names you've got to wonder exactly what he's been fired for, it's not illegal to complain about your job after all, nor is it illegal to publish works of fiction.

 

[Kopikatsu]

Wonder if there's a wrongful dismissal case there. Unless he specifically named names you've got to wonder exactly what he's been fired for, it's not illegal to complain about your job after all, nor is it illegal to publish works of fiction.

All employers have the right to terminate your employment at any time for any or no reason. It's in every contract ever made, although people tend not to read those for whatever reason and then get annoyed that it gets pulled on them.

Anywho, wrongful dismissal is only relevant in cases where what the company did is in violation of the law or the contract. Unless this guy can prove that the company is firing him on the basis of discrimination, or his unwillingness to commit an illegal act at their order, etc, then there's no case to be had.

 

[Albino Boo]

Gotta love the modern workforce.

"One of our employees hasn't completely merged with his desk chair?! He must be removed before this scourge spreads!"

I'm gonna buy his game. No idea if it's any good, but this guy deserves support

Or public servant makes a game insulting the people who pay his wages.

 

[tangoprime]

Wonder if there's a wrongful dismissal case there. Unless he specifically named names you've got to wonder exactly what he's been fired for, it's not illegal to complain about your job after all, nor is it illegal to publish works of fiction.

All employers have the right to terminate your employment at any time for any or no reason. It's in every contract ever made, although people tend not to read those for whatever reason and then get annoyed that it gets pulled on them.

Anywho, wrongful dismissal is only relevant in cases where what the company did is in violation of the law or the contract. Unless this guy can prove that the company is firing him on the basis of discrimination, or his unwillingness to commit an illegal act at their order, etc, then there's no case to be had.

Obviously, you're not aware of how union jobs work, especially public sector unions.
This looks to me like a case of a government bureaucracy flexing it's "you can't say that about us" muscles. Good luck to the fellow.

 

[Zombie_Moogle]

Gotta love the modern workforce.

"One of our employees hasn't completely merged with his desk chair?! He must be removed before this scourge spreads!"

I'm gonna buy his game. No idea if it's any good, but this guy deserves support

Or public servant makes a game insulting the people who pay his wages.

Someone complained about their job? Shocking

Irony is that this game never would have been a story if his employers had just rolled their eyes & ignored it

 

[fix-the-spade]

It's in every contract ever made, although people tend not to read those for whatever reason and then get annoyed that it gets pulled on them.

But the law tends to say they can't fire you without a good reason.

Getting fired because the boss didn't like something you said or did (that wasn't illegal, wasn't a breach of contract and made no specific references to employees or customers) and specifically singled you out would make for a pretty nailed on case here in English land, regardless of what's in any contract you signed.
Unless they could prove that you specifically breached your contract to a court of law (and that their behaviour was consistent with other people who'd done the same thing in the past) you'd have them by the balls.

Of course this is in Canada, so I have no idea what their employment law is like compared to ours.

 

[Kopikatsu]

It's in every contract ever made, although people tend not to read those for whatever reason and then get annoyed that it gets pulled on them.

But the law tends to say they can't fire you without a good reason.

Getting fired because the boss didn't like something you said or did (that wasn't illegal, wasn't a breach of contract and made no specific references to employees or customers) and specifically singled you out would make for a pretty nailed on case here in English land, regardless of what's in any contract you signed.
Unless they could prove that you specifically breached your contract to a court of law (and that their behaviour was consistent with other people who'd done the same thing in the past) you'd have them by the balls.

Of course this is in Canada, so I have no idea what their employment law is like compared to ours.

Canadian law regarding the issue is that if you breach the contract in any way, then they can fire you. While it's not really possible to know what was in his contract without seeing it, it's very likely that the content of the video did break at least one stipulation. Generally speaking, making negative comments about either your job or the establishment is going to get you canned.

Wonder if there's a wrongful dismissal case there. Unless he specifically named names you've got to wonder exactly what he's been fired for, it's not illegal to complain about your job after all, nor is it illegal to publish works of fiction.

All employers have the right to terminate your employment at any time for any or no reason. It's in every contract ever made, although people tend not to read those for whatever reason and then get annoyed that it gets pulled on them.

Anywho, wrongful dismissal is only relevant in cases where what the company did is in violation of the law or the contract. Unless this guy can prove that the company is firing him on the basis of discrimination, or his unwillingness to commit an illegal act at their order, etc, then there's no case to be had.

Obviously, you're not aware of how union jobs work, especially public sector unions.
This looks to me like a case of a government bureaucracy flexing it's "you can't say that about us" muscles. Good luck to the fellow.

See above.

 

[Estelindis]

Just bought and played this and I actually really enjoyed it. I found it fun to continually keep my temper, be professional, and keep explaining everything to the best of my ability without faltering, even though the call ended up having no net result.

Maybe I should be working in a call centre!

 

[synobal]

People need to grow a sense of humor.

 

[Farther than stars]

This whole thing really hinges on whether confidential taxpayer information was divulged or not. If that was the case, then of course he should have been fired, but until the minister is sure of that, she should have only suspended him. This whole thing reeks of medieval punishment, where evidence is negligible to the conviction. Sadly, that's politics for you, where a good image is far more coveted than any rational solution.

Wonder if there's a wrongful dismissal case there. Unless he specifically named names you've got to wonder exactly what he's been fired for, it's not illegal to complain about your job after all, nor is it illegal to publish works of fiction.

All employers have the right to terminate your employment at any time for any or no reason. It's in every contract ever made, although people tend not to read those for whatever reason and then get annoyed that it gets pulled on them.

Anywho, wrongful dismissal is only relevant in cases where what the company did is in violation of the law or the contract. Unless this guy can prove that the company is firing him on the basis of discrimination, or his unwillingness to commit an illegal act at their order, etc, then there's no case to be had.

Actually, that's only true in America. In Europe we have job security which prohibits employees from being fired at random. I would have thought that job security would be a lot tighter in Canada as well, at least compared to the U.S. Then again, even if it is, ministers have a tendency to use their privileges in unsavoury ways. The upside of democracy is, of course, that if a judge were to determine that this was a wrongful termination, Minister Shea can kiss her job goodbye.

 

[Albino Boo]

Gotta love the modern workforce.

"One of our employees hasn't completely merged with his desk chair?! He must be removed before this scourge spreads!"

I'm gonna buy his game. No idea if it's any good, but this guy deserves support

Or public servant makes a game insulting the people who pay his wages.

Someone complained about their job? Shocking

Irony is that this game never would have been a story if his employers had just rolled their eyes & ignored it

Guess what his bosses are the politicians elected by the public, the people he was making money out of by insulting. Don't bite the hand that feeds you.

 

[Tastum]

Just bought and played this and I actually really enjoyed it. I found it fun to continually keep my temper, be professional, and keep explaining everything to the best of my ability without faltering, even though the call ended up having no net result.

Maybe I should be working in a call centre!

No. Nononononono.

I work in a call center, and the stress is incredible. It's amazing how many otherwise intelligent people move their brains firmly into the "off" position once they call in to tech support. I work with car mechanics, and the cars they work on are a lot more complicated to fix than they computers they call about - not that you'd know it when they call in.

I try to keep my temper under control but I'm no saint. On the other hand, I also know to only make vague posts about my job rather than a detailed game with my real life name on it...

 

[Kopikatsu]

Actually, that's only true in America. In Europe we have job security which prohibits employees from being fired at random. I would have thought that job security would be a lot tighter in Canada as well, at least compared to the U.S. Then again, even if it is, ministers have a tendency to use their privileges in unsavoury ways. The upside of democracy is, of course, that if a judge were to determine that this was a wrongful termination, Minister Shea can kiss her job goodbye.

It's true in Canada as well, which is where this took place.

Gallant's job is gone for good either way, though. Even if the court decides that the termination was wrongful, they won't reinstate your lost job. Even if the employer wants to take you back, the court won't let them. The only punishment for wrongful termination in Canada is that the company has to pay the former employee damages.

 

[Zombie_Moogle]

Gotta love the modern workforce.

"One of our employees hasn't completely merged with his desk chair?! He must be removed before this scourge spreads!"

I'm gonna buy his game. No idea if it's any good, but this guy deserves support

Or public servant makes a game insulting the people who pay his wages.

Someone complained about their job? Shocking

Irony is that this game never would have been a story if his employers had just rolled their eyes & ignored it

Guess what his bosses are the politicians elected by the public, the people he was making money out of by insulting. Don't bite the hand that feeds you.

From what I've seen of the game (playthrough videos), he doesn't seem to make any reference to his employers or any politician. It just pokes fun at the nature of his job & irritating customers he deals with

Terminating him was a strange overreaction, plain & simple