By Natalia Rueda 
The tragic death of a telemarketer in Madrid, Spain on June 13th has raised questions over the precarious working conditions faced by many of these employees. The woman, who had been working for a telemarketing company, suffered a heart attack at her workplace. Although an emergency protocol was quickly activated, her life could not be saved.
What has particularly spurred a public outcry is the fact that her remains were left covered on the workplace floor for several hours, and some colleagues were purportedly forced to continue answering phone calls. Telemarketing companies such as Konecta have long been accused of subjecting their employees to excessive stress, and denying them basic rights such as bathroom breaks.
Workers’ unions in Spain have been affirming the allegations, and have demanded that the company implement an action protocol in case of a death in the workplace. The company denies the claims of employees being forced to work next to the corpse, and asserts that they take great care of their personnel.
Nevertheless, this latest incident serves as yet another reminder of the precarious situation of many telemarketers in the workplace. Unless the authorities take a hard stance on this issue and better enforce workers’ rights, such incidents are likely to keep happening.