Last month a report surfaced online that claimed some of the Samsung.com sales reps in the US are working for free. They received no payment, and are working on a commission-only structure. These reps are not directly employed by Samsung, they work for a staffing agency called Ibbu. The Verge reports that Ibbu fired one of those employees who spoke up about its employment status. Other sales reps are penalized and can no longer work on Samsung projects. These workers were actually the online product specialists on Samsung’s website and helped the US customers with their purchases. They were available through a chat option and answered any questions regarding the company’s products, and guided customers through the buying process. The staffing agency Ibbu reportedly gives no salary to these workers, and they get a payment only when they make a sale. Moreover, the reps are asked to provide excessive customer service support while they earn no commissions. In other words, they’re working for free.
Exposing employees are punished or fired
The reports confirm one of Samsung sales representatives has been fired. Jennifer Larson has worked as a sales rep for Samsung and received a suspension email after the news broke. A few weeks later, she received her dismissal email. Ibbu appears to be deeply dissatisfied with the disclosure of the reports and has punished employees who spoke to the media. After revealing the story, two sales representatives were suspended from working on Samsung’s “mission.” Moreover, a rep who shared the story on LinkedIn was also terminated. They can reportedly work on other Ibbu projects but not Samsung. To date, neither Ibbu nor Samsung have not yet responded to the issue. Also, it’s still unclear if Samsung asked Ibbu to suspend exposing workers or if Ibbu suspended them due to violating its services agreement. We can wait for Samsung and Ibbu for more comments on the matter.
