Makati call center hires senior citizen

A senior citizen resident of Makati City who finished a city government-managed call center training course was recently hired by a leading call center in the city.

In a report to Mayor Jejomar Binay, Prof. Yolanda Palma-Bonaobra of the University of Makati (UMAK) Extension Service Office, said that Constante de Leon, 61, of Barangay Pembo, was hired by Ambergris Solutions after he finished his short-term course at UMAK.

The training was administered by the Makati Training, Placement and Livelihood Consortia (MTPLC).

Bonaobra, who is also the head trainor, said De Leon and his wife, Rosario, were among the students who signed up for the city’s short-term course that started last June and ended September.

Rosario, who will retire as a teacher this year, also plans to work for call centers after her retirement.

Bonaobra said Constante and Rosario were her most diligent students. Their training includes English advancement, business writing, customer relations, sales, telemarketing and American history and culture.

Aside from the call-center program, the MTPLC also offers computer literacy and Internet courses.

Senior citizens have signed up and successfully completed the said program.

"The senior citizens were instructed on the basics of MS Windows and MS Office applications like Word, Excel, and Power Point. They also learned how to surf the Internet and use e-mail," Bonaobra said.

Most senior citizens who enrolled wanted to learn computer applications for their businesses, Dr. Editha Chan, president of MTPLC said.