jeffster Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 As I checked in to my room at the City Inn in Birmingham on Friday, I received a phone call from the employment agency who put me forward for the Yell.com job... Apparrently, I had the job, and the two people interviewing me thought I was a "Star in the making" until it came to the hobbies and interests questions in the interview... I said that I enjoyed watching speedway and football, and was asked if I played any sport myself... I pointed out that this was a bit difficult for me, due to having suffered a stroke a birth, which means I have "only" 85% or so use of my right arm, walk with a limp, etc, as the agency would hopefully have pointed out to Yell....BUT I did play Poker, and was off to the National Amateur championships in Birmingham at the weekend... Apparently, mentioning Poker cost me the job, as the ladies that interviewed me thought, very stupidly in my opinion, that I would download poker software on to my PC at work, and play poker all day at work ! :@ One of the people I chatted to about this unbelievable state of affairs was Dave Woods, Editor of Poker Player Magazine, who said he will ring Yell next week and ask for a comment on the issue from them... This could be an interesting situation, and one that may run and run... Doubtless to say, I am extremely pissed off with Yell's pathetic reasoning, which is pure discrimination, plain and simple...:@:@:@ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aliando Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! thats disgusting - any legal advice available here? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staffy Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! I would defo be taking this further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aykay1 Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Thats fcuking outrageous!! Talk about living in the dark ages :eek What if you'd have put down " I like listening to music in my spare time" Does that mean you would have spent all day downloading music onto their computers?? Utter Nonsense! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaF Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! It's crap and shows an incredible amount of ignorance on Poker, HOWEVER, I for one would NEVER mention poker on my CV or in a job interview because I know this attitude is quite common..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guesswest Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! That's unbelievable!!! It doesn't even make sense. If they'd said something like 'the kind of person that's into poker probably isn't the personality type we're looking for' - that'd be very dumb and very ignorant, but it'd at least be logical. Giving the reason that you'd spend your time downloading poker software is just patently ridiculous. Like AK says - it's no differenty than saying a keen reader will spend their time reading novels, or a chess player will spend their time playing chess. I really wanna hear what they say about this when contacted, please let us know... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burnley Joe Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Jeff, like i said yesterday, what you need to do is ask them for the reason you did not get the job in writing. Once you have this forward it to me and I will happily represent you and you can screw them over for discrmination Joe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pocket Lady Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! :@:@:@ Ridiculous - with most of the nation having home PCs it would be easy to turn down anyone for a job on the grounds that they may surf the net, download sites, etc. Nice one Joe - hit 'em where it hurts! Do you recon that if Carl went for a job he would't get it because he would download porn all day! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
georgej Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Do you recon that if Carl went for a job he would't get it because he would download porn all day! Only if they know him :tongue2 I'd be taking this to a higher level in the yell organisation personally. I can't see for a moment why your hobbies should have a bearing on what you would do in the workplace. Letters to the head office and maybe their legal department if they have one. good luck with this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
equinoxx Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Scandalous! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJ Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! look on the bright side, if they have that mindset, it be a shit place to work. lucky escape Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swampster Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! my brother used to work for them, they treated him and a lot of the guys there like 5-year olds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morlspin Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! look on the bright side' date=' if they have that mindset, it be a shit place to work. lucky escape[/quote'] the point is that he was discriminated against, not wether it was a good job, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spannerjago Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Apparrently, I had the job, and the two people interviewing me thought I was a "Star in the making" until it came to the hobbies and interests questions in the interview... Apparently, mentioning Poker cost me the job, as the ladies that interviewed me thought, very stupidly in my opinion, that I would download poker software on to my PC at work, and play poker all day at work ! A couple of apparentlys set alarm bells ringing here. Who has told you that playing poker cost you the job? Was it the agency or Yell themselves? As Joe says, get confirmation of why you didn't get the job before you go any further. Posting these kind of allegations on a message board could actually get you in trouble. I'd be very clear about the exact circumstances before you go any further. If what you have been told is true then you have a very good case if it's not true you don't want to get in to trouble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doob Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! What fool would mention they play poker online to a prospective employer? How naive! As the poster above mentions I'm sure you failed to get the job because you were unsuitable but please next time make up something like stamp collecting and then when you have the job tell them about the poker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McGoatski Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! next time make up something like stamp collecting and then when you have the job tell them about the poker. I wouldn`t employ a stamp collector cos they`d spend all their working day buying and printing postage at the royal mail website (since you can do that nowadays) to build up their collection. :loon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WorkingForTheEnemy Posted September 24, 2006 Share Posted September 24, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! What fool would mention they play poker online to a prospective employer? How naive! I dont see any reason why it shouldnt be mentioned. As previously said it shouldnt bare any influence on whether you get the job. Now if you said your hobbies were following little kids home from school, that would be a different matter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJ Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! I once lost a job at the very last minute, was going to work for Abbey National, it was about the time Glen Hoddle was quitting England becuase of his comments about disabled people. I made a stupid crack related to this, and offer was swiftly pulled from the table, and I was ushered from the building Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffster Posted September 25, 2006 Author Share Posted September 25, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! The guy from the employment agency told me that one of the women who interviewed me, Yell's HR Director, said that I didnt get the job because I play poker and they were worried that I would play poker all day... The fact is, that if I was stupid enough to even try this, the baize and cards on my screen would easily give the game away... What If had been given the job, started working at Yell, and then mentioned Poker ? Would I have been instantly dismissed ? Doob, I wont even dignify your post with a response.... I will be speaking to the agency tomorrow...I must say though that I didnt like the woman interviewing me,. and I cooled on the job....The two ladies in were, in my opinion, very cold with no people or interviewing skills what so ever...I hope that I never interviewed people in my last job the way I was interviewed..... A couple of apparentlys set alarm bells ringing here. Who has told you that playing poker cost you the job? Was it the agency or Yell themselves? As Joe says, get confirmation of why you didn't get the job before you go any further. Posting these kind of allegations on a message board could actually get you in trouble. I'd be very clear about the exact circumstances before you go any further. If what you have been told is true then you have a very good case if it's not true you don't want to get in to trouble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brael Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Surely they've got their network set up in such a way that their employees can't download and install whatever they want? :unsure That's what my employer does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffster Posted September 25, 2006 Author Share Posted September 25, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Brael, Thats what I thought, but if you work at Yell, you get fully open internet access to look at customers (read "advertisers") websites... Just spoke to the agency who put me forward for the job, and I should receive an email from Yell by the end of this week with the reasons I didnt get the job.....Should make "interesting" reading... Surely they've got their network set up in such a way that their employees can't download and install whatever they want? :unsure That's what my employer does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3vil3yes Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! To be fair if you think that people in HR are balanced, intelligent people then you are kidding yourself. Poker and more generally gambling is a contentious past-time, whilst I hope all here don't have problems, many do. There is a chance that the interviewers have been adversely affected by poker and have therefore a stigma attached to it, if they have let that influence their decision of course it is wrong. I think that when in those situations when talking about non-work related subjects you should be as bland as possible, there are far too many contentious issues in todays society and I wouldn't trust a HR rep to handle that information responsibly. You could give opinion about religion, politics, sexuality, hair-colour, race or nationality and the person interviewing you could prejudge you for being a catholic-conservative-bi-ginger-afrocaribbian-welsh person... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stereoman Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Hmmm. Slightly OT here but did anybody watch Poker Kings the documentary from 2002 about Robert Varkonyi (and Garry Bush, Carlo Citrone, Phil Hellmuth and Simon Trumper)? Varkonyi was looking for work and he put down that he played poker as a hobby. He even had business cards in the shape of playing cards. An interview he went to? The interviewer rejected his application suggesting that poker was a negative factor. On camera. Cruel stuff to watch even if you despise Varkonyi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
equinoxx Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! I was interviewing someone a few weeks ago and she wrote that she 'breeds budgies'. I admit I thought 'how sad' when I first read it but the interview went well and she got the job. The reason why I say this is that it is true - people, like myself, can be discriminating with what is written on the CV or application forms. BUT.. if the person is suitable for the job then their hobbies or interests shouldn't be a factor! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WorkingForTheEnemy Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Despite what I said earlier I must admit, whenever applying for a job, Ive put Sports as an interest rather than Watching Sports or more accuratly Gambling on Sports. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffster Posted October 3, 2006 Author Share Posted October 3, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! FYI, an email that I have received from Yell : (Someone is lying to me..... I do not believe it to be the agency that referred me for the job, as I cant see what they would have to gain from lying to me.... I think Yell are a bunch of slimy reptiles who speak with fork tongue !) Dear Jeff, The reasons for you not being offered is certainly not down to you playing poker. I received feedback around your behaviours, which we measure against the Telesales Consultant profile and will put together the feedback for you and send it to you within the next couple of days. Kind regards Louise _____________________________________________________ Louise Gallant www.yellgroup.com To: Louise.gallant cc: Subject: Confirmation of the reason I was not offered employment with Yell Good Afternoon Louise, You are probably aware that, after my interview with Sylvia Deacon and Emily Bradburn on Thursday 21st September, I was not offered a position as a Telesales Consultant with Yell because I play poker... Sylvia and Emily were of the opinion that I would download poker software onto my Yell workstation, and play poker all day ! The more I think about the reason given for not offering me employment with Yell, the more I fail to see the logic behind it, so would appreciate confirmation whether the real reason that I was not offered employment with Yell was because I play poker, or was there another reason ? Looking at the Yell Group website, Yell UK has a workforce numbering 3,750 staff. I would find it hard to believe that not a single one of those 3,750 staff are not poker players, which is why I find the fact that I am a poker player costing me employment with Yell hard to believe, especially given Poker's boom in popularity in the last 12 - 18 months I trust that you can clarify the situation for me, and look forward to hearing from you. Regards, Jeff Povey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelopeys Posted October 3, 2006 Share Posted October 3, 2006 Re: Yell.com wont employ because I play Poker ! Despite what I said earlier I must admit' date=' whenever applying for a job, Ive put Sports as an interest rather than Watching Sports or more accuratly Gambling on Sports.[/quote'] :rollin :rollin :rollin :rollin :rollin Quality.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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