Is Centrelink hold music purposefully bad? | WTFAQ | ABC TV + iview

Chas Licciardello investigates the Centrelink hold music and creates a unique experiment involving custard... #WTFAQ
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WTFAQ’s crack team of presenters - Chas Licciardello, Alex Lee, Lawrence Leung, Lou Wall, Cameron James and Kirsten Drysdale - hit the sweet spot where comedy meets inquisition to answer the questions that have sparked curiosity in the minds of our audience for far too long.
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[@wombat.6652]

"it's not the music, its centerlink that sucks" - true words.

[@GusGusNoFuss]

Finally a media endeavour actually looking at the real problems for aussies. That music has very unfortunately sealed itself in what i can only assume is the torture memory centre of the brain...

[@margathea7072]

Chas you are badass brilliant. Making me lol loudly when my reaction to to this music ...is to scream out loud mananiacally...

[@jayp5522]

The Indigenous line plays music, I heard Warumpi band sing My Island home 11 times I'm a row 😵‍💫

[@jamesellis1190]

back in the 2010s when I was a student, this music was crackly classical music on a loop ... this seems like a remarkable improvement 😅

[@bradleybarnett9545]

That's the stuff I remember. It took me too long to realise that the distortion on these calls occurred at the same moments. I thought (for too long) that it was about where & how I stood for coverage. Derr.

[@sg145]

yes!. Been in tears and had an anxiety attack, never again.

[@handymanr4729]

How did they even get through to the que? I normally just get hung up on after being told "theres no one here to take your call"

[@andersdottir1111]

Never ring Centrelink- it’s quicker to go there in person and book an appointment, even for simple requests. At least while you’re out you can pick up a coffee or some groceries. Only masochists ring Centrelink.

[@kaddy2]

Well these days, they just hang up on you.... Had to call to work out CCS for my daughter's after school care and it was bad.... Hung up on 3xs. Then they refused my calls lol. Couldn't hide from me going in there in person tho, to have a 5min chat and what I needed done..... Not too sure what's going on with them, but it's not good.

[@Xylogor]

I enjoyed this episode much more than I thought I would, and it started right around the point where custard got involved

[@Phase52012]

"Does Centrelink deliberately choose bad hold music to make people hang up?" - Yes. That's because there are only 2 people on the other end, and even if you're lucky enough to get through after 2hrs of waiting they can't help you. The script they read from won't let them. "Computer says no". (First).

[@silvanastephan4379]

The music is torture even for a few minutes, causes an instant headache or migraine, makes me feel sick and is definitely torture to anyone that has to listen to it

[@keirenle]

It s not just center link unfortunately. It s any phone calls to a gov body. If you only have an hour lunch then you may as well forget about it

[@duncanwallace7760]

Centrelink customers should be allowed to sing into the phone and have others can enjoy their Karaoke.

[@SapphireSolstice67]

Why do you need to stay on hold, why don’t they just call you back once they’re free.

[@chuckcrunch1]

it's actually painful, way too loud and distorted and boring AF

[@KayAteChef]

If you are paid by the Government then you are a Government employee and will do as you are told.

[@lessiansaralonde620]

Two hours, not true. the hold system drops out at 59 minutes. I have timed and confirmed this over multiple instances over a long period of time. Why would the guy who wrote the music admit to anything other than positivity about it? And yes there are people who's sole job is to streamline the 'efficiency' of the statistics. Eg get people off the phone so they dont have to pay someone to deal with it.