Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation

GCS to Hold Job Fair January 23rd

Jan 16, 2008
By DEBBIE HALL - Bulletin Staff Writer.   A North Carolina-based call center is assessing the local work force before deciding whether to locate in Martinsville.

Global Contract Services LLC (GCS) announced Tuesday it will open a branch in the city if there is sufficient interest from prospective employees and community support.

The company will hold a job fair Wednesday, Jan. 23, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the National Guard Armory Building on Commonwealth Boulevard in Martinsville, in an effort to fill 200-plus potential jobs.

If successful, it will move into the Memorial Boulevard building now occupied by the Civic Development Group, which plans to close next month.

Greg Alcorn, president and CEO; Bryan Overcash, executive vice president and chief financial officer; and Bob Lynch, director of expansion for GCS, were among company officials participating in a conference call about their plans on Tuesday.

GCS is a call center that provides both in-bound and out-bound outsourced contact services for some of the largest companies in the world in the financial, insurance, political and telecom fields, officials said.

Prospective employees must be outgoing, have customer service experience either with a call center or retail store, and have a high school diploma.

The majority of employees will be considered full-time and work 40 hours a week on one of two shifts. First shift will be 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and second shift will be 4 p.m. to midnight, officials said.

The company also offers block shifts to accommodate those with more inflexible schedules and some “selective part-time shifts” in its call centers, which typically include 70 to 100 work stations.

Pre-registration is not required and applications will be available at the job fair. However, company officials encouraged potential employees to register before the job fair at the company’s Web site at www.gcsagents.com.

If pre-registering, select the Martinsville site on the application. Pre-registered applicants may be contacted before the job fair, officials said, and only those applying for management positions are asked to bring résumés.

Five factors will determine whether the company locates in Martinsville, including a work force with a strong work ethic, facilities for high-quality work and the availability of management applicants, officials said.

The company hopes at least 15 percent, and up to 20 percent, of its work force will be licensed insurance agents or people interested in obtaining licensure.

“It is a big plus” if employees take a 40-hour class and successfully meet state requirements to become licensed insurance agents, company officials said. The company does not pay for the class, but the pay differential for those obtaining licensure “is pretty significant,” officials said.

The company also needs customer service representatives and/or experienced call center supervisors or managers.

The average base pay for new associates is $8 per hour, but there are opportunities to earn bonuses that push the hourly base pay to $10 per hour, company officials said.

The average annual pay for managers/supervisors is in the mid-to-upper $20,000 range, company officials said.

Employee benefits include competitive wages, major medical, dental, life insurance, paid vacations, paid holidays, 401k plans as well as other incentives and fringe benefits.

Officials said 80 percent of current managers in 11 centers in seven states were promoted from within.

GCS never has closed a facility in its seven years of operation, officials said.

GCS offers services to Fortune 50 and 100 businesses, including AIG, Bank of America, Valero Energy, JP Morgan Chase, Verizon, Wells Fargo, Wachovia, American Express, Washington Mutual, HSBC and many others, according to its Web site and company officials.

Full-time associates in the company’s call centers make more than 2 million customer contacts each month, according to the Web site.

GCS is based in Salisbury, N.C., and opened branches in Pulaski and Saltville, Va., according to its Web site. Last year, GCS either opened centers or added positions in several locations, including Mount Hope, Wheeling, Huntington and Summersville, W.Va., and Kingsville and Odessa, Texas.