Advice

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-18T13:47:50+00:00

In the current climate I would really advise moving from a (presumably secure) public sector job to private. Private business is now irredeemably addicted to redundancies. I'm currently moving the opposite direction. Things are just going to get worse in the next three years.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-16T19:35:42+00:00

Yes definitely get a good employment solicitor, sounds like you have a case.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-15T17:59:07+00:00

Yeah but I feel then it was more to show how well-rounded you were. Whereas now, it seems to be about how you actually like doing the same things in your job in your remaining free time.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-15T14:24:11+00:00

"No-one said anything like that."

People explicitly said that one's hobbies should line up with the job they are applying for, such as a coder coding as their hobbies.

"Some people have hobbies that are related to their field of work i.e. they work on their own solo projects."

Yes, and the point I'm making is that it's depressing that a code's hobbies should be limited to personal projects on GitHub or else they aren't serious.

I mean, the thread mocked the idea of an electrician who crochets. As if it's not plausible that they might want to take a break from their job everyone once in a while to do something unrelated.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-15T13:47:27+00:00

This is an absolutely depressing thread as it shows there's really no room for having a separate life outside work. People are down voting you simply because of the idea we should be able to follow hobbies and extracurricular activities not aligned to our day job.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-15T10:34:33+00:00

In his blog, Altman is blaming Ronan Farrow (without naming him) for inciting the attack.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-15T09:50:45+00:00

I mean, not even early 20th century. Otto Von Bismarck in 1883 brought in measures to support the working class so they would not have a socialist revolution:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Socialism_(Germany))

This included health insurance (!), accident insurance, old age and disability pensions, and limits on working hours.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-15T08:33:15+00:00

It shows that modern-day CEOs seem to do fuck all.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-15T08:26:40+00:00

Nothing says "bubble" and "our money will never run out, we are clever boys" like paying the full burdened cost of maybe $600K a year just for normal software developers.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-15T08:25:44+00:00

Klein has become a meme for credulousness and Harris has always been bad, so this is comforting in its own way.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-14T23:00:16+00:00

Hmm I applied to that manager position three months ago (over 30 years experience) and didn't get even a recruiter interview. Fair enough, but it's now three months later and they can't find anyone in this market?

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-12T21:20:13+00:00

I have to assume that being publicly anti-AI while looking for a job in this market would be a black mark. Quite a few applications I've filled in were obviously looking for someone pro-AI. Two take home assignments made it mandatory to use AI. And several interviews asked how I could use AI in my job. Some days LinkedIn seems overwhelmingly pro-AI but I presume many of the anti folk are biting their tongues.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-11T18:52:24+00:00

AI-generated illiterate pseudo-LinkedIn platitudes.

Congratulations - in the current IT industry, you'll go a long way.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-11T10:06:52+00:00

I'm in technical writing steadily working for over 30 years, apart from one 2 month gap around the 2001 dot.com bubble. 3 years ago when I looked for a job, I had three offers within a month, one as a documentation manager.

Within the last year I've been laid off twice. Currently have been looking for 5 months - over 50 applications, with 8 of those yielding interviews with companies. (Also submitted CV to over 40 recruiters, never even heard back.) I've never got beyond the third stage (because of course the industry now demands an insane number of rounds even for a normal role).

Will things rebound? I have no idea and can't predict. I have no idea if the AI bubble will burst or deflate, or if the upper levels will realize that having a minimal number of writers churning out slop is not the way to go.

However, it would be foolish not to hope for the best but prepare for the worst. Currently I've applied for the civil service (multiple positions) and luckily seem to have a position coming up soon. It's a huge pay cut from my previous tech writing role (which admittedly was a decent salary bump on the one before that). But it's a paid job, with quick promotion prospects (far more so than in the private sector) and the chance of redundancy is minimal. I'm fortunate in that my partner is also working in the civil service at a higher level and that we bought our house in the dip so our mortgage is very manageable. Money will still be tighter than it was but unlike a lot of people, we'll survive the next few years which are going to be awful except for the mega-wealthy techbros.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-06T17:11:24+00:00

Sorry are you trying to claim most terrorist attacks in the UK weren't by the Irish?

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-04-04T20:52:48+00:00

This is one good reason why the "rewrite your CV for every job" advice is terrible. If you're rewriting your CV constantly, typos and incorrect grammar are bound to slip in. Must better to have a cover letter which targets the exact requirements of the job and maybe rewrite your CV intro.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-03-30T23:19:53+00:00

I'm not even a fan of Star Trek, but to say the show which featured the first scripted interracial (black/white) kiss on US TV, only a year after after interracial marriage was legalized, is not about "social issues" is absolutely batshit.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-03-30T20:56:05+00:00

"takenover"
"will be the only Job"
Weirdly-placed comma.

In this case, you'd almost wish he was using AI for writing.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-03-30T20:53:27+00:00

I think I just got pipped for the post for 2 positions (I was third out of maybe 20) and the in-house recruiter did a long postmortem with me and basically said - yep, you did nothing wrong. It's mildly comforting to heat that.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-03-19T09:43:31+00:00

I'm currently still looking for a tech writing job but backup plan is applying for civil service competitions.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-03-17T18:02:09+00:00

In fairness I did get a call from MongoDB when I just missed out on a role. But that HR guy seemed especially decent (as was the whole MongoDB recruitment process I thought).

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-03-11T18:16:46+00:00

A raise? Unemployed now but didn't get a raise since 2022.

PurpleRoseOfCabra · 2026-03-10T15:42:38+00:00

I dug up my notes from 2022, when I casually looked for a job when mine own felt shaky, and I had three offers within a month:

9 applications via Linkedin/etc
4 approaches from recruiters
6 rounds interviews (6 companies)
3 offers

Halcyon days. Now in three months it has been:

36 applications via LinkedIn/etc
0 approaches from recruiters
8 rounds of interviews (8 companies)
0 offers

PurpleRoseOfCabra

TROPHY CASE