Job Applicants

[akb]

I thought you werent supposed to use a comma after the word "and"?

 

[Markymark]

[QUOTE 2690701, member: 259"]Oxford comma, old bean! [/quote]
...but if it's optional, then why berate the OP for missing it out?

 

[simon.r]

rubbish ! You'll be saying it's not 'phone nor 'bus next. What's the world coming to?

Or p'ram'

 

[Doseone]

We recruited recently and had a lot of applications. The job we were recruiting for involved typing.

CV's or covering letters that had errors were immediately put in the no pile. It surprised me how many people couldn't be ar$ed to double check.

 

[Mugshot]

Quite a number of years ago whilst working for a large DIY chain we needed a warehouse assistant. The job would include checking deliveries, filling out the delivery book, palletising stuff, all things warehouse/backdoor related really. I wasn't doing the interviews the store manager at the time was. One particular interviewee sticks in my mind. The interview went on for around 30 minutes or so which was normal, after which I asked the store manager how this particular chap had got on. He was quite clearly rather unimpressed and explained that he had found the young man to be pleasant enough and that he had performed quite well in the interview until right at the end where he was asked if there was anything he would like to ask the store manager, at this point the following conversation took place,
"Is it an issue that I can't read or write?"
"Eh, but you've filled in the application form"
"No, I got my sister to do that for me."
"But you've applied for a job where you're going to have to read delivery notes and fill out forms and many other things involving reading and writing."
"Yeah I know, that's why I thought I better ask."

He didn't get the job.

 

[MontyVeda]

broken britain!

 

[thom]

...but if it's optional, then why berate the OP for missing it out?

Totally agree - in any case the optional comma might have been better served earlier in the sentence. I don't think it makes sense where suggested.

The problem as I see it is that when you have a sentence that needs such clarification via grammar, it would have been better to rewrite and re-express the whole thing, since, by creating long sentences that go on and on and on, with clause upon clause, you create monster constructs of comprehension whose sense has long been forgotten, reading like a limping effort by a panelist from that improvisation radio show "Just a minute", which you feel has started out in hope, gathered pace down some random crevice of involuntary exposition and emerged out the other end whence we are ignorant now of it's original clothing (ripped to shreds as if dragged backwards through a hedge with particularly spiny brambles), yet nevertheless, and not withstanding the specifics of what just happened, the point might have been conveyed to the attentive audience in brief, succinct, parsimonious, individual sentences without redress to elaboration, obfuscation or listing words of ever increasing length from a thesaurus. If you get my drift.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

[QUOTE 2690678, member: 1314"]Please find below my corrections in bold italics...[/quote]

Thanks - I am pretty crap at punctuation! Especially on forums where most posts esp' in Chat are throwaway anyway.

My wife wouldn't employ me for the job but then I wouldn't apply for it in the first place.

My post was only really commenting on CV submissions that didn't comply with the requested required standard. I wasn't trying to say that my grammar was perfect - I know it isn't and have already proved it!

 

[RedRider]

Totally agree - in any case the optional comma might have been better served earlier in the sentence. I don't think it makes sense where suggested.

The problem as I see it is that when you have a sentence that needs such clarification via grammar, it would have been better to rewrite and re-express the whole thing, since, by creating long sentences that go on and on and on, with clause upon clause, you create monster constructs of comprehension whose sense has long been forgotten, reading like a limping effort by a panelist from that improvisation radio show "Just a minute", which you feel has started out in hope, gathered pace down some random crevice of involuntary exposition and emerged out the other end whence we are ignorant now of it's original clothing (ripped to shreds as if dragged backwards through a hedge with particularly spiny brambles), yet nevertheless, and not withstanding the specifics of what just happened, the point might have been conveyed to the attentive audience in brief, succinct, parsimonious, individual sentences without redress to elaboration, obfuscation or listing words of ever increasing length from a thesaurus. If you get my drift.

That reads like the opening par to many a Guardian news story. It's my preferred read but The Mirror or Telegraph are far better written. Short sentences aid comprehension.

 

[jay clock]

Who actually employs a typist these days? Can I have one to do my forum postings?

 

[Davidc]

Who actually employs a typist these days? Can I have one to do my forum postings?

Only if they commute to your place for work on their bike!

broken britain!

But no worse than most other western countries, and better than 40 years ago.

 

[rich p]

My business, whose business is writing, received a steady stream of unsolicited applications from people so passionate about writing and with such excellent attention to detail that they somehow failed to notice the three blatant typos in their CVs, and the spelling mistake in the first line of their covering email. I got one once addressed to Daer Sir/Madam. Astonishing.

Did they think you were transsexual?

 

[rich p]

[QUOTE 2690701, member: 259"]Oxford comma, old bean! [/quote]
I thought that was an old van.

 

[alicat]

My wife is advertising a job for a Senior Typist and specified very high levels of layout skills and accurate grammar for technical documents. She also specified that the documents will be sent straight from the successful applicant to the end-user (clients) as the workload volume is high and that there is no second stage proof-read in her office.

My bugbears are sentences that are:

1. too long;
2. state more than one fact;
3. have inappropriate use of capitals and/or;
4. do not use reported speech correctly.

.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Ah yes, Capitalise Everything Disease is another one.
.

Where's the 'hangs head in shame' smiley ....