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November 2008 Archives

November 3, 2008

Giant migrant invasion expected any minute

Stranger things have happened at sea, they say, and last week disciple Maggie alerted Guru to some strange goings on just by the sea, down on Brighton beach to be precise, which throw the UK's new points-base migrant worker programme into doubt.

It seems some unlicensed employer has taken to 'landing' some seriously suspect, potentially low-skilled migrant worker giants, by floating them in across the north sea - potentially in numbers so vast that the UK will soon be swamped with these eight feet tall migrant behemoths, with the UK Border Agency's tough new border patrols seemingly powerless to stop them.

For the unskilled labour turning up on the UK's beaches are made of 100% plastic, which means they don't need passports and are beholden to no nation in particular, making them particularly suitable for cross-border co-operation, as it were.

And being largely inanimate objects they have no inherent accommodation needs and require neither sustenance nor smoking allowance (unlike Guru's beloved Bulgarians).

However, on (not really very much ) closer inspection, Guru can reveal that they are, in fact, giant Lego toys and, while more productive than the average British worker, should not pose too big a threat to Gordon Brown's pledge of "British jobs for British yobs" - or whatever it was he actually said.

Yours Truly will be sending a Specsavers voucher to disciple Maggie, but urges the nation to keep an eye out for a larger than life-size Lego Death Star and Bionicle warlord. Apparently, if you keep them in their packet, in 900 years they'll be worth at least 25p each.

November 4, 2008

Boosting employment: Guru has the answer

The government has put £27m of EU cash up for grabs for projects that help people improve their skills and stay in work or find a new job.

The call went out today for ideas of ways of boosting people's employment opportunities. Oh, Guru's got some ideas alright.

Continue reading "Boosting employment: Guru has the answer" »

November 5, 2008

Nurse's knickers kick up a stink

A longstanding member of Guru's internet favourites list, it seems online auction site eBay could just be the answer to the world's ills.

Once seen merely as a way of getting hold of tickets to a sold-out gig, fake designer gear and obscure Elvis memorabilia, eBay has evolved into the answer to the credit crunch.

Continue reading "Nurse's knickers kick up a stink" »

Stressed out by stress awareness day

Guru notes that today is National Stress Awareness Day. He would have told you all earlier, but, being stressed out about being kept in the dark about National Stress Awareness Day, Yours Truly was self medicating with a double dose of triple, double espresso and Red Bull - plus iced bun.

Quite why the organisers of National Whatever You Want to Call it Day never bother to tell most of the population about their momentus events drives Guru mad. In fact, he has been advised by his personal physician to avoid all National Whatever You Want to Call it Days from this point forward or risk a heart attack. Although he could then participate in National Heart Attack Brought About by Pointless Naming of Day of the Year Day.

It also occurs to Yours Truly that holding National Stress Awareness Day on 5th November looks like targeting the catholics down in Lewes, East Sussex, who regularly burn effigies of the Pope and other cross wielding big-hatted Charlies on fireworks night.

Talking of Big-eared Charlies, quite what HRH the Prince of Wales's stress levels must be like after the recent airing of his dirty linen on TV in a Channel 4 documentary on someone called Kanga, remains to be seen. But Yours Truly reckons getting his former luvvas to sign an HR-generated confidentiality clause might have helped.

Of course, the jug-eared prince has been living through a kind of Groundhog Day of his very own - Your Never Gonna Be King in a Million Years Day - over and over and over and over...

Continue reading "Stressed out by stress awareness day" »

November 7, 2008

Guru faces identity crisis

To borrow dialogue from the classic Tarantino film Pulp Fiction; What does Guru look like? Describe what Guru looks like. Does he look like a b*tch?

Richard Denny.JPGRegardless of what you might think Guru looks like, Yours Truly certainly bears little resemblance to this gentleman, does he?

So why then does this bloke Richard Denny insist on calling himself Guru?

For as we all know (to borrow another movie catchphrase): There can be only one.

Self-styled "motivational entrepreneur" Denny has launched a business advice website www.guruonline.tv, where viewers can hear his thoughts on training, recruitment and other HR stuff - "straight from the Guru's mouth".

He's modest as well, calling himself "the most inspirational business speaker in the UK". Trumpet blowing extraordinaire, me thinks.

Guru (original) did once consider launching his own advice website with Gurucam facility, allowing users to benefit from real workplace wisdom. Problem was that Yours Truly dispenses all his best musings from his very own throne under the stairs, and that would not make for pleasant viewing. 

November 10, 2008

Gender pay gap - the wait is over

Well, would you believe it, the answer to the age-old gender pay gap was right under our noses - or finger tips.

Yes Esther Guys - not a US college hockey team but a mother-of-three from Surrey - is about to allow women to finally have it all.

She has created a social networking website for school children and their parents.

Continue reading "Gender pay gap - the wait is over" »

November 11, 2008

Crouching worker hidden benefit

If Guru was to ask disciples which nation was the most likely to invent bionic legs for workers of the future, then Japan would probably be top guess.

And you'd be right. Yes, the country which brought the rest of the world robot dogs, Asimo the robot conductor, robot bartenders and the unicycle riding robot, has done it again. The BBC website has some brilliant footage of the robot legs in action, being worn (can you wear a pair of legs?) by a suitably unimpressed demonstrator.

Car maker Honda has unveiled the robot legs and says they will help workers in factories. The device is designed to help people "who work standing or in a crouching position for a long time", according to the company.

Continue reading "Crouching worker hidden benefit" »

November 12, 2008

Tory tax plans: Philpott calls it again

Could it be that leading politicians really are taking their cues from Guru's favourite HR pundit John Philpott?

After the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development's chief economist called for the US Senate to pass President Bush's $700bn bailout package, and for the Bank of England to slash interest rates, he most recently moved on to demand employer national insurance holidays to help tackle unemployment.

Continue reading "Tory tax plans: Philpott calls it again" »

November 13, 2008

BBC in racism row

As Guru was eating a lasagne served to by a non-Italian waiter, and reading news about Barack Obama's election in a newspaper article written by a white journalist, he heard that a BBC Radio presenter had been sacked after calling a taxi firm to requested a non-Asian driver.

Ex glamour girl Sam Mason, 40, reportedly told the operator that a guy with a turban would 'freak her daughter out'.

Continue reading "BBC in racism row" »

November 14, 2008

CIPD name change shock!

Guru can exclusively reveal that the CIPD has changed its name to the CILD.

A press release pinged into Guru's inbox revealed a report on the role of training and learning has been launched by the Chartered Institute of Learning and Development.

Guru wonders whether the institute's members have been consulted over the name change? Surely such a a big decision would not have been made without much hand-wringing but the institute's top brass?

Sadly, the truth is likely to be something much duller, nothing more than a simple mistake on the press release. But it does emphasise the value of proofing copy before you publish or send it out - something Gruu nose all to well... 

However, it got Yours Truly thinking about what acronym would be best reflect the institute in the future. What about CRUD? Guru has no clue as to what it might stand for but feels it accurately reflects its current standing among the profession.

10 sure-fire signs you're about to be made redundant

Redundancies happen in much the same way as various other horrible things happen. Without swearing on a family blog, excrement happens.You have to accept that sooner or later, and the BBC's doom editor Robert Peston would no doubt delight in explaining it to you, your own little business bubble is probably going to burst.

No matter, however, how dire a business's finances become, no matter how astonishingly untenable a department becomes, no matter how many thousands of jobs are lost at your main competitors, there are always some people who manage to be completely taken aback by the news. They fail to spot the tell-tale clues.

Particularly for those relative youngsters who have yet to live through some hard times, Yours Truly presents his list, in reverse order of impending doom, of 10 signs that you, or if you're lucky just some of your colleagues, are about to receive "some bad news".

Guru wholeheartedly recommends to his HR disciples that they in no way attempt to interfere with this predictable process as it will only serve to cause confusion among the workforce...


Continue reading "10 sure-fire signs you're about to be made redundant" »

November 17, 2008

Mandelson in Strictly Come Dancing madness


If there is one thing that keeps Guru getting up and going to the office every morning - the office being a well insulated and fully kitted out basement of his ex-directory secret residence - it is that no matter how much he dislikes work, he dislikes being at home more.

Being at home these days is pretty much like watching an endless stream of brain-numbing, spirit-crushing reality TV shows. That's largely because it consists entirely of watching an endless stream of brain-numbing, spirit-crushing reality TV shows.

Continue reading "Mandelson in Strictly Come Dancing madness" »

November 18, 2008

Jamie Oliver swearing c***-up

It is surely the letter that everyone who has ever worked in customer service has wanted to write.

When a retired teacher sent an email to TV chef and barber-dodger Jamie Oliver complaining about his incessant swearing, he received an abrupt response from Oliver's team.

Continue reading "Jamie Oliver swearing c***-up" »

November 19, 2008

World Toilet Day - words of wisdom

Fittingly, to mark World Toilet Day - yep, World Toilet Day - comes the latest contender for the 'No s**t, Sherlock' comment of the year.

Tony Smith, chief executive of the Consumer Council for Water, cleared his throat and gave this golden nugget of wisdom to the world: "Having your home flooded with sewage," he announced, "is very unpleasant."

Continue reading "World Toilet Day - words of wisdom" »

November 24, 2008

CIPD man on BNP list denies membership

Guru understands that the CIPD member named on a leaked list of BNP activists was vigorously denying the claim this weekend.

Word has it that the individual loudly insisted he was in no way a member of the much-criticised organisation.

Guru assumes, however, that he was happy to admit to being a member of the BNP.

 

 

Continue reading "CIPD man on BNP list denies membership" »

November 25, 2008

Cameron Strictly off his rocker

Great to see that leader of the opposition David Cameron took his big opportunity last week to distance himself and the Tory party from the reality TV nonsense that has overtaken the government.

With the world facing both financial and climatic meltdown, Cameron took the opportunity to speak to voters on an issue that really mattered - John Sergeant's exit from reality TV show Strictly Come Dancing.

"Along with the rest of the country I am devastated," said Dave. "Strictly will not be the same without him."

What next? A Gordon Brown versus David Cameron dance-off for prime minister?

November 26, 2008

Mr Christmas faces credit crunch cutbacks

First there were the falling house prices, then the redundancies - and now the credit crunch has really hit home with a sickening blow.

The man who has celebrated Christmas every day for more than 14 years is scaling back his bumper Christmas Day Christmas Day because of the economic crisis, it has been reported.

Continue reading "Mr Christmas faces credit crunch cutbacks" »

About November 2008

This page contains all entries posted to Guru in November 2008. They are listed from oldest to newest.

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