The Vent and Rant Thread - Page 2074

Rumpelteazer · 10-14-2017, 01:07 PM

My cold is still a cold. I'm feeling slightly better than yesterday, but that's probably due to the fact that I had a good night sleep for the first time in over a week (today I put a small roll of black electrical tape with my travel things, for annoying LEDs). Still, after a busy Saturday I'm tired, my ears are buzzing and my head feels filled with fuzz.

I'm going to deal with it the best way I know: a big cup of my favourite tea, some mindless tv, and a good book.

orlok · 10-15-2017, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Katsunami

It's always HR who messes it up.

I do a lot of interviewing for new staff myself, and I NEVER include HR in the interview process. My private name for HR is "Human Remains"...

(no offence to the decent HR people out there - I do know a few who are very competent and whose opinions I value).

CRussel · 10-15-2017, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by orlok

I do a lot of interviewing for new staff myself, and I NEVER include HR in the interview process. My private name for HR is "Human Remains"...

(no offence to the decent HR people out there - I do know a few who are very competent and whose opinions I value).

Agreed on both counts. And, frankly, I thought HR had no place in hiring decisions. I used them to interface with recruiters when I needed to, but mostly I would simply hand them the resume and ask them to write the offer letter and get it out FedEx Overnight today!

Katsunami · 10-15-2017, 03:46 PM

Now that I'm thinking about it...

- All companies I've worked for were too small (5-25 people) to actually have an HR department beyond 1-2 part time people. "HR" basically were the people who made the contracts, made changes where needed, and sent the invoices to customers for work done.

- Each time I've not been hired after 2 or even 3 interviews were because of HR people or non-technical managers "not feeling the vibe" or some other sort of vague, catch-all statement. There are some things not allowed to be taken into account for hiring people in the Netherlands, for example...

* Living too far away, having to first move to go to work
* Having a physical handicap (assuming said handicap doesn't impair the work, obviously. Hiring someone in a wheelchair in construction work would be stupid, but that same person could easily be a helpdesk employee, for example.)
* Not having a car
* Race, Gender, Religion, Country of origin.... etc...

I'm sure that having a poor eye-sight and not having a car/driver's license is responsible for most, if not all, of my rejections. The rejection always comes after an HR-person or manager suddenly discovers this fact during the second or even third interview, and it seems to freak them out. The questions get extremely generic (even more so if they were generic to begin with) and sometimes even stupid. The conversation always drops like a stone at that point.

And then, "they're not feeling the vibe", because telling me "hiring someone without a car is too much of an inconvenience... you might have to visit a customer two or three times a year, you know..." is not allowed in the Netherlands.

As said: If a handicap impairs a job, it is allowed to reject someone as soon as he applies for it. If you're a car mechanic, but that particular job is in roadside assistance and you have to drive to customers to fix their broken car at 2AM, you're not going to be hired if you don't have a driver's license. Obviously. That's just common sense. On the other hand, if you're a car mechanic applying for a job in a garage, but are not allowed to drive anymore because since last year you're using some sort of medication that prohibits it, refusing you the job on that basis is forbidden... so a catch-all, generic reason such as "there's no click with the team" is given.

orlok · 10-15-2017, 04:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRussel

I used them to interface with recruiters when I needed to, but mostly I would simply hand them the resume and ask them to write the offer letter and get it out FedEx Overnight today!

Exactly my approach to involving HR.

poohbear_nc · 10-15-2017, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by orlok

Exactly my approach to involving HR.

HR is for the paperwork stuff, not for selecting the best candidate for the position ..

Rumpelteazer · 10-16-2017, 06:19 AM

I hate deliverers DPD, it seems that when we expect a package delivered by them it always goes wrong. I had expected a package on Saturday, but I didn't get an email from DPD with the tracking number. I didn't get one this morning either so I emailed the store I ordered my items from. According to them the address on the package was wrong. I checked, the address I had given is correct, and I don't think the store will manually type over the address to the shipping label, that will be automatic. I suspect that we live in a harder to get to area is the real problem.

Last Christmas we invited my uncle over for dinner. But our table was too small to seat five, so about a week and a half before Christmas my mother ordered a fold-out table. It should have arrived a week before Christmas, but it was delayed almost two weeks because the shipping label was damaged. When it was finally delivered the delivery guy profoundly apologized. Every morning, for two weeks, he would lug the table up to the office to get a new shipping label made, every morning he found it back in this stack without a new label and he couldn't scan the old one. Luckily, the table turns out to be very handy when diy-ing and was used at my sister apartment and when redoing her old bedroom.

wodin · 10-16-2017, 01:30 PM

One of the adages that I live by is "HR is NOT my friend!"

Katsunami · 10-16-2017, 03:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wodin

One of the adages that I live by is "HR is NOT my friend!"

This seems to be the general consensus.

The only thing I can conclude is that HR is getting its stuff wrong.

Rumpelteazer · 10-17-2017, 08:19 AM

No sign of my package, I did manage to get the track & trace number, according to the website my package is still in the depot because of the wrong address. Yesterday, the webstore told DPD that the address given was correct. I had assumed it would be delivered today, but it doesn't seem likely. I just send a complaint by email and the finally reacted on my complaint on Facebook, so I gave additional information to them.

Next time if I see that a webstore uses DPD I will not order with them.

DiapDealer · 10-17-2017, 12:42 PM

The level of disappointment I've just experienced with my first purchase of Pizzeria-flavored pretzel Combos in years has been quite great. Possibly even debilitating.

CRussel · 10-19-2017, 07:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

The level of disappointment I've just experienced with my first purchase of Pizzeria-flavored pretzel Combos in years has been quite great. Possibly even debilitating.

Truly, this is a major blow. I'm not sure I'd be able to recover from it, but I know you're a tough individual and you _can_ get through this. Be strong, and we're here for you.

badgoodDeb · 10-19-2017, 07:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

The level of disappointment I've just experienced with my first purchase of Pizzeria-flavored pretzel Combos in years has been quite great. Possibly even debilitating.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRussel

Truly, this is a major blow. I'm not sure I'd be able to recover from it, but I know you're a tough individual and you _can_ get through this. Be strong, and we're here for you.

Here, have some chocolate instead. That or wine ought to cure everything.

poohbear_nc · 10-19-2017, 07:49 PM

Guinness will wipe out the horrible memory ...

DiapDealer · 10-19-2017, 08:53 PM

Thanks, folks. I've think I've settled on a Bell's Double-Cream Stout to wash my Combo-related blues away.

10-15-2017, 03:46 PM	#31099
Katsunami Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,111 Karma: 34000001 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: KPW1, KA1	Now that I'm thinking about it... - All companies I've worked for were too small (5-25 people) to actually have an HR department beyond 1-2 part time people. "HR" basically were the people who made the contracts, made changes where needed, and sent the invoices to customers for work done. - Each time I've not been hired after 2 or even 3 interviews were because of HR people or non-technical managers "not feeling the vibe" or some other sort of vague, catch-all statement. There are some things not allowed to be taken into account for hiring people in the Netherlands, for example... * Living too far away, having to first move to go to work * Having a physical handicap (assuming said handicap doesn't impair the work, obviously. Hiring someone in a wheelchair in construction work would be stupid, but that same person could easily be a helpdesk employee, for example.) * Not having a car * Race, Gender, Religion, Country of origin.... etc... I'm sure that having a poor eye-sight and not having a car/driver's license is responsible for most, if not all, of my rejections. The rejection always comes after an HR-person or manager suddenly discovers this fact during the second or even third interview, and it seems to freak them out. The questions get extremely generic (even more so if they were generic to begin with) and sometimes even stupid. The conversation always drops like a stone at that point. And then, "they're not feeling the vibe", because telling me "hiring someone without a car is too much of an inconvenience... you might have to visit a customer two or three times a year, you know..." is not allowed in the Netherlands. As said: If a handicap impairs a job, it is allowed to reject someone as soon as he applies for it. If you're a car mechanic, but that particular job is in roadside assistance and you have to drive to customers to fix their broken car at 2AM, you're not going to be hired if you don't have a driver's license. Obviously. That's just common sense. On the other hand, if you're a car mechanic applying for a job in a garage, but are not allowed to drive anymore because since last year you're using some sort of medication that prohibits it, refusing you the job on that basis is forbidden... so a catch-all, generic reason such as "there's no click with the team" is given. Last edited by Katsunami; 10-29-2017 at 06:31 AM.

10-17-2017, 12:42 PM	#31106
DiapDealer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 27,549 Karma: 193191846 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD	The level of disappointment I've just experienced with my first purchase of Pizzeria-flavored pretzel Combos in years has been quite great. Possibly even debilitating. Last edited by DiapDealer; 10-17-2017 at 12:47 PM.

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10-14-2017, 01:07 PM	#31096
Rumpelteazer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,100 Karma: 24047426 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Utrecht, the Netherlands Device: Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition	My cold is still a cold. I'm feeling slightly better than yesterday, but that's probably due to the fact that I had a good night sleep for the first time in over a week (today I put a small roll of black electrical tape with my travel things, for annoying LEDs). Still, after a busy Saturday I'm tired, my ears are buzzing and my head feels filled with fuzz. I'm going to deal with it the best way I know: a big cup of my favourite tea, some mindless tv, and a good book.

10-16-2017, 06:19 AM	#31102
Rumpelteazer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,100 Karma: 24047426 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Utrecht, the Netherlands Device: Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition	I hate deliverers DPD, it seems that when we expect a package delivered by them it always goes wrong. I had expected a package on Saturday, but I didn't get an email from DPD with the tracking number. I didn't get one this morning either so I emailed the store I ordered my items from. According to them the address on the package was wrong. I checked, the address I had given is correct, and I don't think the store will manually type over the address to the shipping label, that will be automatic. I suspect that we live in a harder to get to area is the real problem. Last Christmas we invited my uncle over for dinner. But our table was too small to seat five, so about a week and a half before Christmas my mother ordered a fold-out table. It should have arrived a week before Christmas, but it was delayed almost two weeks because the shipping label was damaged. When it was finally delivered the delivery guy profoundly apologized. Every morning, for two weeks, he would lug the table up to the office to get a new shipping label made, every morning he found it back in this stack without a new label and he couldn't scan the old one. Luckily, the table turns out to be very handy when diy-ing and was used at my sister apartment and when redoing her old bedroom.

10-16-2017, 01:30 PM	#31103
wodin Illiterate Posts: 10,279 Karma: 37848716 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: The Sandwich Isles Device: Samsung Galaxy S10+, Microsoft Surface Pro	One of the adages that I live by is "HR is NOT my friend!"

10-17-2017, 08:19 AM	#31105
Rumpelteazer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,100 Karma: 24047426 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Utrecht, the Netherlands Device: Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition	No sign of my package, I did manage to get the track & trace number, according to the website my package is still in the depot because of the wrong address. Yesterday, the webstore told DPD that the address given was correct. I had assumed it would be delivered today, but it doesn't seem likely. I just send a complaint by email and the finally reacted on my complaint on Facebook, so I gave additional information to them. Next time if I see that a webstore uses DPD I will not order with them.

10-19-2017, 07:49 PM	#31109
poohbear_nc Now what? Posts: 58,852 Karma: 135181808 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Durham, NC Device: Every Kindle Ever Made & To Be Made!	Guinness will wipe out the horrible memory ...

10-19-2017, 08:53 PM	#31110
DiapDealer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 27,549 Karma: 193191846 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD	Thanks, folks. I've think I've settled on a Bell's Double-Cream Stout to wash my Combo-related blues away.