Business Daily (Nairobi)
Isabella Mukumu
3 March 2008
After spending four years searching for a job, 'tarmacking' in local parlance, Ms Angela Wanjiku thought lady luck had finally smiled on her when she heard of a promising vacancy at Popote Wireless, a local loop operator.
Armed with a diploma in Information Technology, Ms Wanjiku sent in her application later and was promptly invited for an interview, where she encountered the first unusual demand - that she pays Sh10,000 for a short training course after which her employment would be guaranteed.
Determined not to let the opportunity slip through her fingers, she raised the sum, helped by friends and relatives.
At the end of the training with SDS, an arm of the firm, there was no job waiting for her nor a refund of the fees. She is now back on the streets.
And she is not alone. The Business Daily has established that at least 70 young graduates have been conned of their hard-to-come-by money through the scheme by SDS, which was launched in October last year.
The company was set up in October to provide Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) training to graduates who it would then place in companies offering call centre services to local and international clients.
Popote had started the BPO training centre on Mombasa Road to cash in on the need for specialised skills in Kenya's newest employment field. By doubling up as an agent, Popote was also seeking to broaden its revenue streams as the local loop operation business comes under threat from unified licences being granted by the Communications Commission of Kenya.
It is now turning out that these noble intentions were lost along the way due to what Popote calls 'miscommunication' to trainees. The loop operator blames its training manager, Geoffrey Kings, for the job placement scandal.
Hired to manage the training centre and direct a curriculum, Mr Kings would randomly send victims a Short Message Service (SMS) informing them of vacancies in the company. Others were informed via electronic mail.
Popote Wireless Finance and Administration Director, Mr Fred Gatiramu, said he was aware of the SMS, but denied knowledge of the e-mails. Mr Kings said he was not the source of the messages.
That contention leaves one question begging for answers. On what basis was SDS collecting money from the recruits and training them? Documents seen by Business Daily indicate the fees were accepted through receipts carrying the Popote Wireless logo.
A contract indicated that the recruits would be employed as call centre agents for three months and were to report to an account supervisor, earning commissions and bonuses.
Salaries were placed at Sh20,000 per month excluding bonuses. One caution stood out in the agreement drafted by Mr Kings.
"The employee agrees, during or after the term of employment not to reveal confidential information or trade secrets. Should employees reveal or threaten to reveal this information, the company shall be entitled to an injunction restraining the employee."
Only five of the 70 trainees were recruited at the Popote Wireless call centre and another 25 placed in other call centres. Mr Gatiramu, however, said the fees would be reimbursed if after 45 to 60 days, the trainees would not have secured jobs. The training centre has since been closed.
"I did not give Mr Kings the mandate to use the company's letter head to draft fallacious enrolment forms and a deceptive contract between Popote Wireless and the students," Mr Gatiramu said and sought to clarify that the BPO training centre was only operating at the Popote Wireless offices, but was owned by a different entity called SDS Limited.
As a training centre, it was authorised to charge fees, he said but regretted that this was not clearly communicated.
He blamed Mr Kings for failing to mention the training in his SMS.
Popote communications and marketing Manager, Ms Violette Riungu, said the scheme had nothing to do with the company - a position Mr King agreed with, saying the training was for his company Base Book.
The entity is not mentioned anywhere in the contract which Mr Kings signed with the recruits, who are yet to receive any certificates to show they went through the course.
"The fees charged were for processing certificates sent from the US, but we did not guarantee any jobs," Mr Kings said.
Besides the Sh10,000 they would be required to pay another Sh10,000 after being placed in a call centre, he added.
Ms Winnie Wambui of Manpower Services, a training firm, says companies have the mandate to incur training and certificate costs for their employees or new recruits.
"The only exception is if the recruit wants separate training," she states. Moreover SDS does not appear to be a training school.
Sources at PriceWaterhouse Coopers said charging for training was not normal practice as it raised suspicions on the basis on which the fees were charged.
"Companies should set aside money for training employees and new recruits," said a training consultant.
Shadowy job recruitment agents are not new in Kenya, the most publicised case being that of Madam P which in 2000 conned job seekers of millions of shillings under the pretext that it would place over 40,000 people in the cruise line business.
With unemployment estimated at over 40 per cent, many unemployed graduates tend to give the agents the benefit of doubt but mostly end up on the losing side. The agents have recently been replaced by a horde of job search websites, few of which can pass the credibility test.
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Thank you very much for this opportunity that you people have given to the people to comment.Have done BPO and I have no job please help me attain a position in your company.I will be of great use in your organisation I think you should try me thank you for your kindness.