CalMac creates new customer service jobs in Stornoway

Ferry operator CalMac is bringing new jobs to Stornoway with the opening of new customer service centre in the town.

CalMac's customer service team is boosted by additional staff over the busy summer months and this year five of these seasonal jobs will be based in the Western Isles.

They will be dedicated to helping handle some of the 300,000 plus calls and 44,000 emails the company receives every year.

CalMac has pledged to look at ways of spreading support function staff more evenly around its area of operations. 

'We are on record as saying we will look at boosting job numbers within the islands we support when the opportunity arises, and this pilot is an important first step on this journey,' said CalMac's managing director, Robbie Drummond. 

'Although this may seem a modest move, it is a firm reinforcement that we are taking our communities wishes to see more support service jobs spread around our network seriously.'

CalMac currently employs around 1700 people from Campbeltown in the south to Stornoway in the north, 60% of whom live in fragile coastal or island communities. Last year they carried more than 5.2 million passengers on their fleet of 33 vessels across 26 routes to island and remote mainland destinations making the company the UK's largest ferry and harbour operator.

CalMac's customer service team has achieved the highest level of accreditation from the Contact Centre Association for the quality of its customer service who described them as 'a competent, well managed, highly customer focused operation.'

They were particularly impressed by the development and use of social media to keep passengers up-to-date. Over the last year the team managed almost 30,000 social media messages and has attracted more than 100,000 online followers.

'As passenger numbers continue to grow so do the number of enquiries we receive. I'm delighted that we are able to spread around the people we need to help support passengers travelling to experience the wealth of attractions the west coast has to offer,' added Robbie.  

Potential candidates can apply on the CalMac website.