Mr. Cedric R. Bagtas, deputy general secretary of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), e-mailed feedback to my column in
The Manila Times today,
“An iffy and convoluted call-center English usage,” where I replied to the following question by Forum member na2rboy last March 10, 2012 (
“All agents continue to be assisting customers”):
At work, I have people telling me that this sentence is correct: “All available agents continue to be assisting other customers.”
Is it correct? If not, what rule is it breaking?
In my head, it feels wrong. Maybe because I am desperate to make it “All available agents are still assisting other customers.”
In sum, I suggested that a grammatically correct and more palatable statement from a customer relations standpoint is this reconstruction of na2rboy’s proposed rewrite of the original sentence:
“All available agents are assisting other customers at the moment.”
Mr. Bagtas contends that the above sentence should simply be constructed as follows:
“All agents are assisting other customers at the moment.”
He explains why: “If agents were ‘available,’ they would be free to assist customers. If all were assisting customers, they would not be available.”
As an afterthought, Mr. Bagtas sent this subsequent e-mail:
“Simpler: ‘No agent is available at the moment.’”
My reply to Mr. Bagtas:You took issue with my simplification below of na2rboy’s proposed rewrite of the original sentence in question:
“All available agents are assisting other customers at the moment.”
You believe that the adjective “available” is superfluous in that sentence, arguing that “If agents were ‘available,’ they would be free to assist customers. If all were assisting customers, they would not be available.” You’d then rather knock off “available” to further simplify that sentence as follows:
“All agents are assisting other customers at the moment.”
Grammatically, I wouldn’t take issue with your simplified version. It’s very concise and to the point. From a customer relations standpoint, however, your revision strikes me as rather harsh and peremptory; in Tagalog,
“masama ang dating.” I think the original framers of the sentence in question used the adjective “available” in the sense of “present or ready for immediate use” to soften the blow of the message. We must keep in mind that the statement “All available agents are assisting other customers at the moment” is actually meant to be an agreeable and inoffensive expression—a euphemism, if you will—for rejecting a call from a customer at a particular moment. The mental picture it seeks to create in the mind of the rejected caller is that while the call center is adequately staffed with agents, all those available are servicing other customers while the rest may not be available at the moment for some other reason—maybe they are on a rest break or on their day off. On the other hand, when “All agents are assisting other customers at the moment” is said instead, an undercurrent is created in the language that might give the impression that the call-center is understaffed and is therefore unable to cope with peak loads of customer calls. I think that this negative nuance is what adding the word “available” is meant to eliminate in that statement, and I must say that “available” does its work very nicely.
As to your even simpler revision, “No agent is available at the moment,” it is admirable for its utter simplicity but it’s a big no-no in customer relations. Indeed, to begin a reply in such a situation with a flat-out “no” is, to my mind, terribly inconsiderate and offensive to the caller. It’s like hitting the caller with a blunt instrument. This is where we must draw a clear distinction between just aiming for plain, simple, and concise English that offends the sensibilities of the listener, and thoughtfully coming up with agreeable, considerate language that warms the listener’s heart instead.
