AT&T Opens Ohio County Call Center
By JOSELYN KINGArticle Photos
Fact Box
WHERE ELSE?
There are about 50 AT&T Mobility call centers in the U.S. Those closest to West Virginia are in Ashland, Ky., Indiana and Illinois.
TRIADELPHIA - When a local AT&T Mobility wireless customer calls for help with their service, it's now possible their neighbor will answer.
Jessica Mason of Belmont travels 45 minutes each way each day to her new job at the AT&T call center at The Highlands - and she said it's worth the drive.
"I've been in customer service and management before," she said. "I had heard about what AT&T is doing, and I wanted to see it for myself. I was amazed. It was more than what I expected."
Mason is among the 50 new employees in the first wave of trainees at the new AT&T Mobility Call Center at The Highlands. These call center representatives are to start answering incoming calls from AT&T wireless customers about their billing and service on Nov. 4.
Three more waves of 50 trainees - for a total of 200 new employees - are expected to be hired in the coming months. The jobs include health care benefits and a 401(k) plan.
AT&T, West Virginia and Ohio County officials turned out Thursday for the official ribbon-cutting for the call center. The event came just one day after AT&T Mobility announced record earnings despite recent economic events, noted Ralph de la Vega, chief executive officer of AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets.
He said AT&T added 2 million customers during the last quarter - the most in its history.
And next week AT&T rolls out its new third-generation broadband network for wireless customers, which de la Vega promised is the "fastest in the world."
De la Vega seemed much impressed with the new call center at The Highlands, noting he had never seen "this concise of development."
"It's a great location," he said. "Who wouldn't want to work here? "We've found a great pool of talent in West Virginia and Ohio County, and these people have a good work ethic."
Accompanied by U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., and West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin, de la Vega got a tour of the new call center Thursday after its official opening. He was met with cheers when he greeted some of the new employees as they sat in a training session.
"I had heard so much about AT&T, and its opportunities are endless," said trainee Tammy Gooch of Wheeling. "I'm very much impressed. These are honest people about what they say, and they follow through."
Trainee Sam Green of Elm Grove sees career advancement opportunities at the call center.
"The way the economy is going, I saw AT&T provided benefits when others couldn't," he said. "It's a great place."
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Annonn
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10-30-08 7:20 PM
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The average salary for this job is around 19K-21K a year. After paying for benefits and 401K you will bring home around 16K-17K a year. I was hired to a managerial position here and will have to turn it down. MAX 35K a year. No relocation. I have 2 BA’s, a Masters and proudly served in the US military. AT&T is taking advantage of workers in a section of the country hit hard by our failing steel industry. They pay low rates to people in a desperate situation. I made more at Best Buy 9 years ago as a simple FT employee and had better benefits then offered in Wheeling today. If you need a job, it is a place to work. Anything beyond that, I would not expect much and pray that your spouse or partner is working as well.
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Destroyallmonsters
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10-25-08 2:53 PM
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The starting wage is 9.25 per hour. With a pay increase every 60 days or so. This is still an excellent wage in comparison to other employers in the area. Also, lets remember that Rockefeller was the one who brought these jobs to the area and it should be known that Rockefeller was the architect behind the FISA bill. Which gave the telecoms immunity from previous spying. With that said, I still welcome the arrival of AT&T and its promise of 200 new jobs to the valley. Even though I highly distrust them and Rockefeller. Jobs are jobs, and the more new ones we receive the better.
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EllisWyatt
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10-25-08 1:46 PM
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I applaud AT&T for investing in the community. I am sure that they had some incentive to do so. I am also sure that the average worker doesn't earn anywhere near $30,000 and probably doesn't have worthwhile health insurance. All that aside, at least there are some full-time jobs available. Perhaps you can't support a family on them but you can work them until something better comes along. Even if the jobs pay $10 per hour, they do offer 40 hours a week. $400 per week is better than ZERO per week. So, stop the whining about unions, which will scare away potential employers and say THANK YOU to AT&T for taking a chance on this area. Maybe they will move more work here if it works out for them. You should be welcoming to employers rather than hostile and demanding unions.
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justathought
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10-25-08 1:50 AM
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At an excellent starting wage, excellent benefits, and an atmosphere that puts constuction, coal and mill jobs to shame this is no job to shake a stick at. AT&T welcomes unionization as well. It's a blessing that they have discovered that this valley can offer quality, proffesional employees that previously had to move away in order to find employment!
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wvforsale
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10-24-08 8:13 PM
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Any proof that these jobs pay $15 per hour? Since that is the hourly wage to get $30,000 a year. I wouldn't put much stock (pun intended) in a 401K program!
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whisperinghope
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10-24-08 7:59 PM
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Wow I am impressed! Enjoy it before it too goes to India. The USA needs to produce things, not just be a country of services. I would be more ecited to see a plant that makes the phones. Guess that's asking way too much.
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robojock
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10-24-08 7:36 PM
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Maestle, you are dead on target.
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Maestle
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10-24-08 5:52 PM
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The unions did that to them selves. Sorry. No pity from me. Greedy fools.
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atoddh
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10-24-08 4:42 PM
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Any sort of payroll is better than nothing.It should be noted,however,that it will take 3 to 4 of these jobs to replace one skilled steel worker job at W-P. W-P may lay off upwards of 1500. So it would take 5000-6000 of these jobs to replace the lost skilled labor payroll.This does not include the skilled jobs that will be lost by W-P suppliers. The need is for high paid skilled manufacturing in the OV.
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RobinHood
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10-24-08 4:41 PM
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$30,000 a year in this area is actually pretty good. If you are making that and your spouse makes $20,000 a year you are above the average for this area. The cost of living here is pretty low and you may not get everything you WANT at that salary but you will not have to go without any of the basic necessities. And you still have some additional income to put back for your childs college savings and get some of the extras that you want. You can complain all you want about the call center but it is a good thing for the area and it pays better than most jobs around here. And like someone else said, it could lead to better higher paying positions. And actually $30,000 is not to much less than an entry level accountant makes in Wheeling at a CPA firm, if they are lucky enough to make that much. Entry level in Pitt is like $40 to $45 thousand but you also need to compare cost of living up there or cost of driving if you commute.
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WVEXPAT
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10-24-08 4:06 PM
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200 NEW jobs and STILL complaining and calling for unionization already! This is amazing! At $30,000 a year per job that's $6,000,000 in money that wasn't in the region last year! So let's add it up. If we had 4 AT&T centers in Glendale, 4 centers in Moundsville, 4 centers in Weirton........ Get serious folks! Keep up the whining, complaining and calling for unionization and let's see how many more $6,000,000 a year businesses come to the area!
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Destroyallmonsters
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10-24-08 3:41 PM
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Well said, ohyeah. They also fail to realize that a job with AT&T could possibly lead to a higher, more prestigious position within the company. Not to mention pay raises within 90 days of employment.
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ohyeah
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10-24-08 3:30 PM
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Some of you are rude. let people who work for this company take pride in what they do. Why are some of you always trying to drag down life and other people. It is sad. I am happy this call center opened. i hope it gives people who work there confidence and provides the needs for their families. say what you want but $30,000 is great for a second income or a single mother who wants to show her kids she can do something and provide for them.
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Destroyallmonsters
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10-24-08 3:00 PM
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Quasar, shouldn't you be out scratching fake B's into your cheek or something?
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Maddie
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10-24-08 2:53 PM
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If this is not a CWA represented job, it should be. Union representation would boost their pay considerably. The parent company is very used to dealing with the union but the employees need to organize.
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Quasar
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10-24-08 2:43 PM
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Maybe some of the displaced coal miners can go there after the environmentalists get through eliminating their jobs under a democrat controlled congress and presidency.
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Rockledge
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10-24-08 2:28 PM
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Y'all are right --- these jobs an insult. No human being should be forced to work when they could be on welfare or workers comp instead. We should all just sit on our fat butts and fantasize about how great we had it in the past when the unions were doing all they could to help the little guy by strangling the little guy's employer to the point where employers said no mas, no mas. When will the people of the OV realize that if you like good jobs, then you must have a love, not a resentment, for the employer who offers you that job? It is that long-standing resnetment of employers that drove employment elsewhere --- what is so hard to understand about that?
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true2bun
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10-24-08 2:19 PM
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i did not see a wage listed RUBjock
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robojock
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10-24-08 1:58 PM
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Are people going to stay in the area for that wage? No Are people going to move here for that wage? No Are college grads going to stay here to work there? No
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robojock
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10-24-08 1:56 PM
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uncommonsen., amen, a band-aid on a broken bone, which is why our greatest export is intelligent kids!
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Destroyallmonsters
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10-24-08 1:45 PM
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As much as I hate AT&T, these jobs are much better then any telemarketing jobs available in the area. They offer 401K and insurance packages with a guaranteed workweek of 40 hrs.
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wonderwhy
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10-24-08 1:35 PM
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uncommon- ditto!!!!!
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wonderwhy
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10-24-08 1:34 PM
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robinhood- this is yet another way to say we have jobs in the valley. and 30000 a year is sure not the national ave. it is more a tad over what is considered low income and not all that far off of what is considered poverty level, but hey, let's all get one of these jobs then go get another one at the highlands and we will make equal to what was available when the steel mills and mfg jobs were in the valley
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UNCOMMONSENSE
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10-24-08 1:00 PM
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I LOVE the way the politicians called these "high tech" jobs!!! PLEASE!!! You can train a monkey to do this work!!! Little more than another Teletech! The ONLY "high tech" involved in these jobs is the use of computers!!! We need REAL high tech jobs!!! Research and Development and assembly of "high tech" AMERICAN electronics!!! We don't need 4 call centers in EVERY town!!! We need REAL jobs that pay REAL money!!!
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RobinHood
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10-24-08 11:42 AM
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Supposedly the average annual salary is around $30,000 a year. But by them saying that it makes me wonder if that is what the normal employee could expect to make around, or if this figure takes all the salaries they expect to pay for all the employees in that office and divide it by the number of employees.
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