Social Security Administration: Information on Monitoring 800 Number Telephone211 Calls

摘要

In 1988, the Social Security Adminstration (SSA) established a toll-free 800211u001enumber to improve the public's ability to contact SSA by telephone. The public 211u001ecan reach SSA through that number from anywhere in the country. Teleservice 211u001erepresentatives (TSR) at the 800 number answer beneficiary inquiries, schedule 211u001eappointments, and correct benefit records. Public use of the 800 number grew from 211u001emore than 41 million calls in fiscal year 1989 to more than 75 million in fiscal 211u001eyear 1997. As of January 1997, SSA employed more than 4,000 TSRs at 37 211u001eteleservice centers (TSC) throughout the country. On high-volme days, an 211u001eadditional 2,460 technical staff are available to assist TRSs in answering 800 211u001enumber calls. These employees are known as 'Spikes' because they provide this 211u001esupport on the busiest days with the highest peaks, or spikes, in call volume. 211u001eSSA monitors its 800 number telephone calls to ensure good customer service under 211u001ea program referred to as service observation, in which SSA employees listen to 211u001eTSRs during their calls. The purpose of this observation is to assess the 211u001eaccuracy and courtesy of the TSRs who provide information to the public, to 211u001eidentify training needs, and to gather statistical information on calls received.