Phone a friend

Try to imagine an unimaginable dilemma for a mother, one that is beyond heartbreaking. Then try to put yourself in the shoes of a call handler – a stranger to that woman, on the other end of a phone, and yet charged in this moment to try to be of help.  

Anita Rose (pictured above), a team leader at UNISONdirect, was in exactly that position. “One woman called, a migrant worker, because her baby had died. She was on the phone crying her eyes out because she couldn’t afford a funeral, but she also had no access to state support to help her pay for it.

“You just sit there thinking, God almighty, her baby has died, and she’s wondering, ‘Do I leave him and not bury him?’ To not have a funeral for her son. I sat there and thought, let me just pay for the funeral.” 

Based in Stevenage, UNISONdirect is a team of 77 staff, 52 of whom are call handlers, whose job is to listen, reassure and guide members to the help they need, often with day-to-day concerns, but sometimes in a moment of crisis.  

These are not lawyers, negotiators or workplace representatives, but every day they provide something just as vital as any of those professions: a calm voice, empathy, and practical support for members navigating some of the hardest moments of their working lives. For many members in low-paid and high-stress jobs, that conversation can feel like someone helping them carry a weight that has become too heavy to bear alone.  

“Our main goal is to get members in touch with the right department at UNISON,” call handler Saffron Green explains. “But we’re also a listening ear. Members find it reassuring to have a human being on the other end of the phone saying, ‘We’re going to do everything we can to support you.’ It’s a judgement-free zone.” 

And those calls are coming more often than ever. The head of UNISONdirect says that over the past five years contact volumes have increased by around 20%. The change isn’t just in numbers; it’s in the nature of the conversations themselves.  

“We’re hearing more about mental health,” she says. “People aren’t embarrassed to talk about that anymore. They’re quite open with us, and they’re more willing to reach out when previously they might not have felt confident to do that.” 

Adds Saffron: “Every day we speak to people who are struggling. And a lot of workplace problems eventually lead to someone saying, ‘It’s affecting my mental health.’”  

As a result, the job requires not just efficiency and knowledge, but compassion, resilience and emotional intelligence. Every call is different. And sometimes, everything depends on getting that first conversation right. 

Every call tells a story 

One of the most important things is building trust over the phone, often within minutes. “If members are upset and they need to vent, we let them do that,” says Saffron. “You don’t interrupt. Sometimes people just need to get everything off their chest.” Once the initial outpouring settles, the call handler reflects the situation back to ensure they have understood correctly. “That helps build a connection.”  

One call might be from someone who wants to be put int touch with their branch, or they’d like guidance around their contract being changed, or details about becoming a retired member. The next could be more urgent: financial concerns, or the need for legal support, or a worker on a skilled visa whose employer has suddenly cut their hours, leaving them at risk of deportation. 

“It’s incredibly varied,” says Sarah Drew (not her real name) “You never know what’s waiting on the other end of the phone.”  

Margaret Carpenter, who has worked at UNISONdirect for four years, says: “Sometimes people don’t even realise what’s happening to them because they’re so deep in it. Members will describe symptoms of being bullied at work but insist that’s not what it is. When you talk through the definition of bullying with them, you can almost hear the moment when it clicks. They’ll say, ‘Oh… wow. Yes, that is what’s happening.’” 

Often, the issue members initially raise is only the beginning of the story. “Someone might call about a sickness absence meeting. Then you find out the sickness is caused by work-related stress. And then you discover their pay has dropped because they’re off sick, so there are financial worries as well. It all links together.”  

That process of gently unravelling a situation can take time but can make all the difference.  

Beyond 9-5 

Workplace problems rarely arrive conveniently during office hours. UNISONdirect operates from 6am to 11pm weekdays, and 9am-4pm Saturdays, ensuring members can reach someone when they need help most.  

“People often don’t even know there’s a problem until they get home after work and open a letter and suddenly realise something serious has happened,” Margaret says. “The worst news is often delivered at 5pm on a Friday. But we’re still open. They pick up the phone because they need to do something right away. Even that first step can bring relief. 

“It’s about taking that weight off them. They’ve done their part by making the call. Now we’ll do ours by getting the referral in place.” For many staff, that sense of purpose is what keeps them in the role. “I love the job,” Margaret says simply. “I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.” 

The emotional toll 

But listening to people’s problems day after day can be emotionally demanding. Sometimes the stories stay with you. “I had a call from a woman whose son had passed away,” Margaret recalls. “His birthday was around the same time as my son’s birthday. When I finished the call, I just cried. It makes you think about your own life.” 

Sarah has been part of UNISONdirect since 1999, when the job was very different. “There were no calls at first,” she laughs. “Everything was done by post. Members would write to us and we’d reply with letters.”  

Today, the phone rarely stops ringing. “Even this morning, I’ve only been here two hours, and I’ve had three people crying. Sometimes the hardest calls come from people who feel completely alone” she says.  

“One evening I spoke to two young migrant workers about the same age as my daughter. They had no money and didn’t know how they were going to pay their rent. One of them said she felt suicidal. I stayed on the phone until someone arrived to be with her. 

“You try to switch off,” she continues. “But sometimes it’s hard not to worry. I find it particularly difficult when men are crying. You don’t hear that as often, so when it happens it really hits you.”  

The team are trained to look after themselves, as well as members. “If a call is too much, you’re in control,” Margaret says. “You can take a break.” 

And, despite the emotional weight of the job, Sarah says the team support each other through it. “There’s always someone here to talk to,” she says. “No matter the day or the hour.” 

Anita says that, for the team leaders, overseeing the call handlers and supporting them through those conversations is a crucial part of the job.  

Learning the human side 

New members of the team undergo six weeks of training before taking calls independently. For Jack Doyle, who joined the team five months ago, that training was invaluable, but only part of the preparation. “You can teach systems and processes,” he says. “But the human side of the job is something you learn as you go.” 

New starters spend time listening to experienced colleagues before gradually handling calls themselves with a mentor nearby. “The buddy system works really well,” Jack says. “At first, you just listen and learn. Then you start taking calls with support.” 

Despite the seriousness of the work, the office culture remains supportive and warm. “It sometimes feels like you’ve got fifteen mums in the office looking out for you,” he jokes. 

The power of a conversation 

Despite the challenges, the team say the job also brings powerful reminders of the difference a conversation can make. 

Anita recalls one call that began with a furious member shouting down the phone: “She’d been through so much. She was driving while she was talking to me and I had to ask her to pull over because she was so upset.” As they talked through the situation, Anita helped the caller see things from a new perspective. “It started with anger, but she ended the call laughing. She said to me, ‘You don’t understand what you’ve done for me today.”  

UNISONdirect call handlers never find out what happens after a referral is made. But they know that those conversations matter. For many members, that call is the first step toward resolving a workplace problem, accessing support, or simply feeling heard. And sometimes, that first step is the hardest one.  

“What we do here can be life or death for some people,” Anita says quietly. “The members we speak to are the people who keep society running – cleaners, carers, nurses, the workers who often get paid the least and carry the most pressure. They’re not footballers or celebrities. They’re ordinary people doing vital jobs. They deserve someone who will listen.”