For some light relief, take a look at the the 25 Top Oddball Interview Questions of 2011, as compiled by Glassdoor.com, a website that allows people to say what they really think about the company they work for. These questions were ones that were really asked in interviews, apparently. My favourite (and I say that sitting here in the comfort of my own home and not sweating in an interview) is “Just entertain me for five minutes. I’m not going to talk”. How would I answer? Nervous laugh? A song and dance routine. Tell the guy he’s a complete ar*e and walk out? I don’t know and I hope I never have to provide that answer.
Employment Law Explained
Category Archives: Miscellaneous Stuff
Book Review: Hopeless in Gaza?
I always enjoy the week between Christmas and New Year; it gives me the chance to do all those jobs that I’ve wanted to do around the house and to wade into the pile of books and novels I collect throughout the year and never quite get chance to read. This year has been no different and in amongst all the festivities I’ve managed to make some inroads into the reading list. A case in point is the first novel by Selma Dabbagh, a British Palestinian writer, called Out of It. It makes for a very uncomfortable, although very readable experience (if that isn’t a contradiction in terms).
New Year, New Look
In the dog days of 2011, when all there is to do is eat cold turkey and chocolate (but not necessarily at the same time), I thought it time to give the old blog a make over. I was a bit jaded with the old blue and grey colour scheme and wanted something minimalist that would fit in with the other two blogs I write – Troubleahead and UK BlawgRoundUp. I like the cleanness of the white background, contrasting with black writing. I’d also got fed up with seeing my mugshot in the sidebar. I might get a new photo done in due course, but for the time being I’m going with the stripped down bare basics look. The old theme – Persephone – didn’t provide much design flexibility and altering the borders round photographs proved beyond my coding skills. The problem was the text font was very hard to distinguish from the background colour: not so anymore.
So You Think Your Job’s Bad? Part II
Continuing the theme from my last post, I stumbled upon a picture of another employee forced to dress up for work. I don’t think this is quite as bad as forcing Father Christmas to promote Pizzas at road junctions, but it’s not far off. Love it!
So You Think Your Job’s Bad?
Then think again. It could be a lot, lot worse. For instance, this morning (19th November – 35 shopping days to Christmas) I saw Santa with a sandwich board advertising Dominos pizzas standing at a cross roads.
This prompted several questions, mainly from my 4 year old daughter who may still believe; such as “what is Santa doing standing there”, “why?” and “where are the reindeers?”. My question was “what has Santa got to do with pizzas?” Is it likely to make me rush out to Dominos and invest? Unlikely and not just because I’m a food snob.
Saturday Digressions
The Bribery Act probably doesn’t outlaw breakfast “networking” meetings that just happen to coincide with rugby matches and take place near a large TV screen. I’m always very keen on that sort of networking. Invitations to all rugby, cricket and football matches accepted.
On the way to the said networking meeting you can listen to Lucy Kellaway’s excellent podcast called, appropriately enough “Listen to Lucy”. I’ve only recently discovered them and they are great: short, amusing, pithy but always worth a listen. Lucy’s theme is usually the nonsense surrounding corporate life – buzzwords, mission statements, public announcements, research etc. Her latest considers a recent report that says teddy bears may be a benefit in the boardroom. You can listen by clicking here.
Should Clarrie be Sacked Pt.II
The villain of the piece
Please forgive me for writing a second post on “Clarriegate” but leaving aside the actual issues of who what when etc, it occurred to me that the main focus of this story, to my mind anyway, is how a business can recover from a devastating blow like this. Is it possible at all and if they can survive will they have to rebrand to distance themselves from the “old business”?.
Should Clarrie be sacked?
Dum-de-dum-de-dum-de-dum-dum-de-dum-dum-de-da-da
Listeners to The Archers will know that, finally, there is a really good story line being played out at the moment. The Ambridge Organic Dairy, purveyors of ice-cream, cheese and yoghurt run by the terminally wet Tony and insufferably smug Pat Archer (Pol Pat to listeners)has been hit by an outbreak of ecoli, which infected several people at a Country Fair, including two small children who have been hospitalised as a result.
Ambridge Organic faces ruin as a result, not just from having their products taken off sale everywhere but from the prospect of being sued by the victims. Couldn’t happen to nicer (fictitional) people.
Law and Peace Reviewed
I often get asked what is the difference between a solicitor and a barrister. The usual answer is that solicitors are the back room boys and barristers stand up in court and present the cases, but that isn’t completely definitive. A more visual example is provided in Tim Kevan’s new book “Law and Peace”, the second volume of BabyBarista’s diaries: barristers wear doublecuffs and hand-made suits, solicitors leather jackets and rucksacks. Hmm.
Spot the Spoof
Over this last long weekend I must confess to not having spent much time thinking about employment law or (given the decision of my laptop to self-destruct just prior to the Royal Wedding) to blogging. But two articles mentioning employment law did catch my attention. One was a spoof, the other deadly serious. Can you tell which?
One article was entitled
Yesterday’s show of British institutions at their best hide years of political vandalism that wrecked our constitution
It went on thus;