Switchboard operator
Encyclopedia
In the early days of telephony, through roughly the 1960s, companies used manual telephone switchboard
s and switchboard operators connected each call by inserting a pair of phone plug
s into the appropriate jacks. Each pair of plugs was part of a cord circuit
with a switch associated that let the operator participate in the call. Each jack had a light above it that lit when the telephone receiver was lifted (the earliest systems required a generator on the phone to be cranked by hand). Lines from the central office were usually arranged along the bottom row. Before the advent of direct distance dialing
, switchboard operators would work with their counterparts in the central office to complete long distance call
s.
With the development of computerized
telephone dialing systems, many telephone call
s which previously required a live operator can be placed automatically by the calling party
without additional human intervention. Before the advent of automatic exchanges
, an operator's assistance was required for anything other than calling telephones across a shared party line
. Callers spoke to an operator at a Central Office who then connected a cord to the proper circuit in order to complete the call. Being in complete control of the call, the operator was in a position to listen to private conversations. Direct Dial
(DDD) systems were developed in the 1920s to reduce labor costs as usage increased, and to ensure privacy to the customer. As phone systems became more sophisticated, this sort of direct intervention by the telephone operator was needed less and less.
As well as those employed by the public networks, operators are also needed at private branch exchanges to answer incoming telephone call
s and connect them to the correct
extension
.
Depending on the employment setting, the roles and level of responsibilities of a "Switchboard operator" can vary greatly, from performing wake-up calls
in a hotel to coordinating emergency responses, dispatching, and overhead paging in hospitals. Operators employed in healthcare settings have other duties, such as data entry, greeting patients
and visitors, taking messages, triaging, or acting as an after hours answering service. Experienced, well trained operators generally command a higher salary.
A note: in the United States of America, any switchboard operator employed by an independently owned public telephone company which has not more than seven hundred and fifty stations was excluded from the Equal Pay Act of 1963
.
In January 1878 George Willard Croy became the world's first telephone operator when he started working for the Boston Telephone Despatch company.
Emma Nutt
became the world's first female telephone operator on 1st September 1878 when she started working for the Boston Telephone Despatch company, because the attitude and behaviour of the teenage boys previously employed as operators was unacceptable. Emma was hired by Alexander Graham Bell
, and reportedly, could remember every number in the telephone directory of the New England Telephone Company.
Telephone switchboard
A switchboard was a device used to connect a group of telephones manually to one another or to an outside connection, within and between telephone exchanges or private branch exchanges . The user was typically known as an operator...
s and switchboard operators connected each call by inserting a pair of phone plug
TRS connector
A TRS connector is a common family of connector typically used for analog signals including audio. It is cylindrical in shape, typically with three contacts, although sometimes with two or four . It is also called an audio jack, phone jack, phone plug, and jack plug...
s into the appropriate jacks. Each pair of plugs was part of a cord circuit
Cord circuit
In telecommunication, a cord circuit is a switchboard circuit in which a plug-terminated cord is used to establish connections manually between user lines or between trunks and user lines. A number of cord circuits are furnished as part of the switchboard position equipment. The cords may be...
with a switch associated that let the operator participate in the call. Each jack had a light above it that lit when the telephone receiver was lifted (the earliest systems required a generator on the phone to be cranked by hand). Lines from the central office were usually arranged along the bottom row. Before the advent of direct distance dialing
Direct distance dialing
Direct distance dialing or direct dial is a telecommunications term for a network-provided service feature in which a call originator may, without operator assistance, call any other user outside the local calling area. DDD requires more digits in the number dialed than are required for calling...
, switchboard operators would work with their counterparts in the central office to complete long distance call
Long Distance Call
"Long Distance Call" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.-Synopsis:A boy communicates with his father's European-immigrant mother, who had recently died, using a toy telephone that she gave him on his birthday before her passing. The boy, Billy, runs out in...
s.
With the development of computerized
Stored Program Control exchange
Stored Program Control exchange is the technical name used for telephone exchanges controlled by a computer program stored in the memory of the system. Early exchanges such as Strowger, panel, rotary, and crossbar switches were electromechanical and had no software control...
telephone dialing systems, many telephone call
Telephone call
A telephone call is a connection over a telephone network between the calling party and the called party.-Information transmission:A telephone call may carry ordinary voice transmission using a telephone, data transmission when the calling party and called party are using modems, or facsimile...
s which previously required a live operator can be placed automatically by the calling party
Calling party
The calling party is a person who initiates a telephone call over the public switched telephone network, usually by dialing a telephone number....
without additional human intervention. Before the advent of automatic exchanges
Telephone exchange
In the field of telecommunications, a telephone exchange or telephone switch is a system of electronic components that connects telephone calls...
, an operator's assistance was required for anything other than calling telephones across a shared party line
Party line (telephony)
In twentieth-century telephone systems, a party line is an arrangement in which two or more customers are connected directly to the same local loop. Prior to World War II in the United States, party lines were the primary way residential subscribers acquired local telephone service...
. Callers spoke to an operator at a Central Office who then connected a cord to the proper circuit in order to complete the call. Being in complete control of the call, the operator was in a position to listen to private conversations. Direct Dial
Direct distance dialing
Direct distance dialing or direct dial is a telecommunications term for a network-provided service feature in which a call originator may, without operator assistance, call any other user outside the local calling area. DDD requires more digits in the number dialed than are required for calling...
(DDD) systems were developed in the 1920s to reduce labor costs as usage increased, and to ensure privacy to the customer. As phone systems became more sophisticated, this sort of direct intervention by the telephone operator was needed less and less.
As well as those employed by the public networks, operators are also needed at private branch exchanges to answer incoming telephone call
Telephone call
A telephone call is a connection over a telephone network between the calling party and the called party.-Information transmission:A telephone call may carry ordinary voice transmission using a telephone, data transmission when the calling party and called party are using modems, or facsimile...
s and connect them to the correct
extension
Extension (telephone)
An extension telephone is an additional telephone wired to the same telephone line as another. In middle 20th century telephone jargon, the first telephone on a line was a "Main Station" and subsequent ones "Extensions". Such extension phones allow making or receiving calls in different rooms,...
.
Depending on the employment setting, the roles and level of responsibilities of a "Switchboard operator" can vary greatly, from performing wake-up calls
Wake-up call (service)
A wake-up call is a service provided by most lodging establishments to provide a service similar to alarm clocks via a telephone....
in a hotel to coordinating emergency responses, dispatching, and overhead paging in hospitals. Operators employed in healthcare settings have other duties, such as data entry, greeting patients
Receptionist
A receptionist is an employee taking an office/administrative support position. The work is usually performed in a waiting area such as a lobby or front office desk of an organization or business...
and visitors, taking messages, triaging, or acting as an after hours answering service. Experienced, well trained operators generally command a higher salary.
A note: in the United States of America, any switchboard operator employed by an independently owned public telephone company which has not more than seven hundred and fifty stations was excluded from the Equal Pay Act of 1963
Equal Pay Act of 1963
The Equal Pay Act of 1963 is a United States federal law amending the Fair Labor Standards Act, aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex . It was signed into law on June 10, 1963 by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program...
.
In January 1878 George Willard Croy became the world's first telephone operator when he started working for the Boston Telephone Despatch company.
Emma Nutt
Emma Nutt
Emma Mills Nutt became the world's first female telephone operator on 1 September 1878 when she started working for the Edwin Holmes Telephone Dispatch Company in Boston, Massachusetts....
became the world's first female telephone operator on 1st September 1878 when she started working for the Boston Telephone Despatch company, because the attitude and behaviour of the teenage boys previously employed as operators was unacceptable. Emma was hired by Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell was an eminent scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone....
, and reportedly, could remember every number in the telephone directory of the New England Telephone Company.
See also
- Attendant consoleAttendant consoleAn attendant console is a telephone station that is generally part of a private branch exchange or Centrex or other private telephone system...
- Private branch exchange
- Telephone switchboardTelephone switchboardA switchboard was a device used to connect a group of telephones manually to one another or to an outside connection, within and between telephone exchanges or private branch exchanges . The user was typically known as an operator...
- Telephone operatorTelephone operatorA telephone operator is either* a person who provides assistance to a telephone caller, usually in the placing of operator assisted telephone calls such as calls from a pay phone, collect calls , calls which are billed to a credit card, station-to-station and person-to-person calls, and certain...