The shops are packed and my local supermarket has run out of carrots, parsnips and potatoes... it must be Christmas!!
Best wishes for Christmas and the New Year :)
The shops are packed and my local supermarket has run out of carrots, parsnips and potatoes... it must be Christmas!!
Best wishes for Christmas and the New Year :)
Posted at 04:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
I'm off to Australia for Christmas this year, so am busy getting things up to date before I go. I've been having fun this afternoon writing our latest newsletter (email newsletter@newlevelrecruitment.com if you'd like us to include you). I've found some great funnies on the internet, not all strictly publishable, but I really like this poem so I thought I'd share it on the blog.
A Politically Correct Christmas Story
'Twas the night before Christmas and Santa's a wreck...
How to live in a world that's politically correct?
His workers no longer would answer to "Elves".
"Vertically Challenged" they were calling themselves.
And labour conditions at the North Pole
were alleged by the union to stifle the soul.
Four reindeer had vanished, without much propriety,
Released to the wilds by the Humane Society.
And equal employment had made it quite clear
That Santa had better not use just reindeer.
So Dancer and Donner, Comet and Cupid
Were replaced with 4 pigs, and you know that looked stupid!
The runners had been removed from his sleigh;
The ruts were termed dangerous by the E.P.A.
And people had started to call for the cops
When they heard sled noises on their rooftops.
Second-hand smoke from his pipe had his workers quite frightened.
His fur trimmed red suit was called "Unenlightened."
And to show you the strangeness of life's ebbs and flows,
Rudolf was suing over unauthorised use of his nose
And had gone on Geraldo, in front of the nation,
Demanding millions in over-due compensation.
So, half of the reindeer were gone; and his wife,
Who suddenly said she'd enough of this life,
Joined a self-help group, packed, and left in a whiz,
Demanding from now on her title was Ms.
And as for the gifts, why, he'd never had a notion
That making a choice could cause so much commotion.
Nothing of leather, nothing of fur,
Which meant nothing for him. And nothing for her.
Nothing that might be construed to pollute.
Nothing to aim, Nothing to shoot.
Nothing that clamoured or made lots of noise.
Nothing for just girls, or just for the boys.
Nothing that claimed to be gender specific.
Nothing that's warlike or non-pacifistic.
No candy or sweets...they were bad for the tooth.
Nothing that seemed to embellish a truth.
And fairy tales, while not yet forbidden,
Were like Ken and Barbie, better off hidden.
For they raised the hackles of those psychological
Who claimed the only good gift was one ecological.
No baseball, no football...someone could get hurt;
Besides, playing sports exposed kids to dirt.
Dolls were said to be sexist, and should be passe;
And Nintendo would rot your entire brain away.
So Santa just stood there, dishevelled, perplexed;
He just could not figure out what to do next.
He tried to be merry, tried to be gay,
But you've got to be careful with that word today.
His sack was quite empty, limp to the ground;
Nothing fully acceptable was to be found.
Something special was needed, a gift that he might
Give to all without angering the left or the right.
A gift that would satisfy, with no indecision,
Each group of people, every religion;
Every ethnicity, every hue,
Everyone, everywhere...even you.
So here is that gift, it's price beyond worth...
May you and your loved ones, enjoy peace on Earth.
Copyright; Author Unknown
Posted at 05:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Ok, I don't normally like to post job ads on our blog ('cos it's for blogging, after all, not job ads), but in this case I'll make an exception. I've just had the most interesting and challenging new role (Group HSE Manager) come in and I'm really keen to talk to anybody who thinks they might fit the bill.
My client is one of the world leaders in ship repair and dockside services, based in Newcastle, and operating over several large sites in the UK. They're looking for a Group HSE Manager (newly created role) to develop and implement a common set of standards across the group, while (obviously :)) ensuring compliance to the highest level of HSE standards. This is a senior role, requiring someone with a fairly devolved management style, accustomed to handling behavioural change issues in a high risk environment.
If you think this might be you, then please drop me a line - jo@newlevelrecruitment.com or call me on 0845 270 1640 and we can discuss things in more detail. The job ref is 0950.
Great news this week - TEAM (The Employment Agents Movement - www.jobsatteam.co.uk), the UK's biggest network of independent recruitment agents,has joined forces with NPA, The Worldwide Recruiting Network (www.npaworldwide.com) to form the WORL'S LARGEST network independent recruiters, meaning that we can now offer our clients and job seekers the best jobs and candidates frojm the USA, Canada and Australasia as well as the UK. Full press release as follows:
"NPA, The Worldwide Recruiting Network with global headquarters in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA has entered into a strategic alliance with TEAM - The Employment Agency Movement, based in the UK. Both organizations are engaged in the business of facilitating networking between their member firms offering independent recruiting, executive search and temporary staffing. The alliance has been formed to increase global business opportunities for the cumulative membership. Clients and candidates represented by these two networks will benefit from the worldwide connections and boundary-breaking reach that will be available from the combined networks of TEAM and NPA.
The arrangement provides NPA with a larger presence and more points of connection in the UK and across Europe. Once implemented, NPA members will have a new collection of recruiting partners to work with cooperatively to fill open positions and place employees throughout UK and Europe. The NPA-TEAM alliance creates a combined recruiting network of over 600 locations worldwide with coverage in a broad range of occupations and industries. “NPA is excited to have a working relationship with TEAM. We believe there is value for NPA members, TEAM members and for the clients and candidates represented by each,” states Dave Nerz, President of NPA.
TEAM’s 300-plus members will gain access to NPA’s worldwide membership of nearly 400 premier independent recruiters to respond to the growing needs of UK and European based clients with demand for talent in North America, South America, Africa, and all across Asia/Pacific. “To gain this access to a like-minded organization with a global presence offers TEAM members a real advantage,” according to Simon Garbett, Managing Director of TEAM.
###
About NPA, The Worldwide Recruiting Network. NPA is an international, member-owned recruiting network facilitating cooperative, split-fee placements between its members. In 2008, NPA members shared over US$9 million in split-fee revenue. Founded in 1956, NPA has 420 member offices with more than 1,500 individual consultants in 25 countries on 6 continents. www.npaworldwide.com
About TEAM – The Employment Agency Movement. TEAM is the largest independent networked group of recruitment and employment service providers in the UK. With TEAM, a business gains all the advantages synonymous with a local agency whilst also benefiting from a substantial support network. TEAM has over 300 branch locations across the UK with a combine 1 billion turnover with an estimated 26,500 placements across the UK last year. www.jobsatteam.com "
Posted at 09:28 AM in Health & Safety Staff, Jobs in Health & Safety, Recruitment, Useful information, What we've been up to. | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Technorati Tags: health safety jobs, health safety recruitment, hse jobs, hse recruitment, new level recruitment, NPA, recruitment, recruitment agency, safety jobs, staffing , TEAM
Posted at 04:40 PM in Business, Health & Safety Staff, Jobs in Health & Safety, Useful information | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Posted at 12:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
It is a common complaint of HR managers that they don’t get all they expect from their external recruitment supplier, that agencies are full of talk about high levels of service, getting to know you etc etc. As usual when a relationship doesn’t live up to expectations, there is likely to be fault on both sides. It is very difficult for an agency recruiter to get a really good idea of what you’re looking for if you don’t tell them. Recruitment via ESP isn’t really feasible, is it?
With this in mind, I’ve put together a few thoughts on things that can be done to improve communication and to increase the likelihood of a successful recruitment outcome.
Posted at 04:50 PM in Health & Safety Staff, Recruitment, Useful information | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
I thought that the results of the 2009 IOSH Salary and Attitudes Survey published this week in the SHP were generally good news for the profession! Here are some of the key points for those who missed it:
Attitudes are changing… according to the survey 43% felt that health and safety practitioners had a higher status than five years ago and 60% added that their company is more committed to health and safety than it was five years ago.
More than half of the respondents thought their job would be changed to include extra duties - around 80% of respondents already have responsibility for fire safety, two-thirds for occupational health, over half for environment, a quarter for security / general FM and a sixth for quality control.
Approximately 80% of respondents said that they wanted to see a government-recognised scheme of accreditation for the profession.
The survey took place in April 2009 and of the 2969 people who responded, 93% were ‘in-house’ employees and 7% were consultants. 1973 people supplied salary details. For full details see www.iosh.co.uk/salarysurvey
Have a great weekend!
Posted at 05:45 PM in Health & Safety Staff, Jobs in Health & Safety, Recruitment, Useful information | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Phew! After some hours of hard work I've just completed the latest edition of NLR News to send out to all our registered job seekers (and anyone else who might find it useful!) If you're not on our list but would like to be, just drop us a line to newsletter@newlevelrecruitment.com and we'll be happy to include you.
We also do a regular NLR News for our clients (past, present and future :)) which is designed to supply a mix of useful HSE and recruitment information. Just email us at the same address putting "client newsletter" in the subject line.
Posted at 05:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Now that the economy is showing such strong signs of picking up there are obviously going to be a lot more people out there going for interviews, so I thought the time might be right to revisit a blog I posted earlier this year on interview techniques and advice. I hope you find it useful.
The thing to remember is that an interview is a 2 way street - they are assessing you to see if you will fit their company, and you are assessing them to see if the company (and the role) fits you. If you just remember that, you'll find that you are a lot less nervous about the whole process!
If you're lucky and you're being put forward for the position by a reputable recruitment agency (like New Level Recruitment, for example :)) you will have been offered an interview preparation session before you go in - take it! The prep. session will not only cover the likely interview format and probable questions, but will also give you the chance to clarify in your mind the things you need to say and ask. It will also "limber you up" mentally and help you to relax once you get into the actual interview.
Good preparation is the key to ensuring a successful interview so be sure to go through the job description in detail prior to the interview and match that against your own unique experiences. The interviewer may also ask why you are specifically interested in working for the particular company, so ensure you have fully researched the company beforehand – the company website is a good place to start. The interviewer will initially ask you to talk through your CV and previous experiences. Below is a short list of just some of the questions you may be asked in an interview situation: Why are you looking for a new position? Tell me about yourself What interests you about and our company and this specific role? What strengths could you bring to the role? Describe two weaknesses\development areas - and what you are doing to address them How would your current manager describe you? Talk me through a recent achievement that you are proud of. Give me an example of when you have had to manage two or more conflicting priorities - what happened, what did you learn, how would you manage differently? Give me an example of when you last worked under pressure - what happened? You will probably have questions of your own that you would like to ask the interviewer, be sure to write down critical questions so you don’t forget. It is really important that you leave the interview having found out everything you need to know to decide if this is the right opportunity for you. Finally, before you leave the interview if you have decided that this is the position and company you have been looking for, make sure you tell the interviewer. It will ensure that the manager is in no doubt about your level of interest and it is a great way to make a lasting impression! By the way, I hope it goes without saying that you should always make sure you arrive in plenty of time, dress smartly (and appropriately) and take a copy of your CV, your passport and the job spec. with you. It all just helps things to go more smoothly!
Posted at 12:51 PM in Jobs in Health & Safety, Recruitment, Useful information | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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