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The Citizen, 1992-07-01, Page 5Arthur Black Being a job gypsy gives you plenty to talk about One of the luxuries of being middle- aged or older is that you can look back on all the jobs you've held. And to glory in the knowledge that you don’t have to do them any more. Back in the Bad Old Days there were jobs galore. The pay was usually lousy, the working conditions ran the gamut from dreary to downright dangerous, and the boss as often as not was a jerk. But that was okay. You took the job for as long as you needed it, then one fine day you told your esteemed employer to pound Sifto, and off you went to find another job. I counted them up once and discovered I had 27 different kinds of jobs before I finally manacled myself to a typewriter for life. I tried everything from door-to-door encyclopedia flogging to swabbing the deck of a Liberian oil tanker. Being a job gypsy doesn’t make you rich, but it does give you plenty to talk about. ilnternational Scene ■SISk TO By Raymond Canon Lower dollar could relieve cross-border shopping sting In case you haven't been noticing lately, the Canadian dollar has been falling on world money markets so that it is about 60 lower in terms of the American dollar than it was only a few months ago. It is not difficult to see what this does to us as a nation; our exports become cheaper and it is also a cheaper country for foreign tourists to visit, all of which are to the good. On the other hand, and this is certainly not all that bad, imported goods are more expensive and it also costs more to shop in the United States. In other words some of the sting should be going out of cross-border shopping. However, as long as the difference in the price of gasoline in the two countries is as great as it is right now, I have the feeling that there will be a goodly number of people close to the border slip over to fill up their lank. You won't believe this, of course, but I have some American relatives not too far away from the border (Erie, Pa, to be exact). They are delighted when I bring them things from Canada that, are you ready?, cost less and are of higher quality than the comparable goods in the U.S. It has always been this way but, with all the publicity that cross-border shopping has been receiving, \ The other day I was in a bar, jawing with another Jackrabbit of All Trades. We wound up comparing our work wounds — softest Jobs. Best Paying Jobs. Jobs We'd Like to Have Again. And All Time Worst jobs. "Roofing" I told him. "Tar and gravel. Started at five in the morning and worked until at least three guys fainted from the heat or the fumes. Put a thermometer on the roof one day and the mercury shot right off the scale in less than a minute. Still got scars on my arms from the hot pitch. Get thirsty just thinking about that job" I said. "How about you?" He was a battered-looking guy with big callous-hardened mitts and twitchy eyes that looked like they were sitting on a lot of secrets. I figured he’s come back with a story about digging for emeralds in the jungles of Brazil or rearranging kneecaps in the jungles of New Jersey. His big fist trembled as he reached for the draft glass and his voice dropped to a husky mutter. "Personnel recruiter" he croaked. "Toughest job I ever had." Turned out he'd spent two and a half years screening recruits for a large Toronto corporation. "Before that I’d worked the oil fields in Alberta, tugboats in the Georgia Strait and a spell of hardrock mining in Manitouwadge — but the only job that ever gave me an ulcer was a desk job on Bay Street." I thought he was pulling my leg, but such situations have been overlooked. Pity! However, we must resist the urge to think that, now that the dollar is lower, all we have to do is sit back and enjoy the benefits. As far as I am concerned, the dollar could drop about another 40 U.S. to reach what is called Purchasing Power Parity. This is the situation which exists when $1,000 Canadian dollars will buy about the same basket of goods which its American equivalent would in the U.S. When it gets to about 78-790, then we can start to sit back, but only if we do a couple of important things. Number one is in the field of tourism. When our dollar drops in value, as I have indicated above, Canada becomes cheaper for foreigners to visit. When they come, you will (this is an order) treat them as honoured guests to the extent of making them think that a visit to Canada was the greatest thing that could have happened to them. Guess what they will do when they get back home? Tell others, of course. I recently had to host a delegation of Swiss businessmen and their wives, few of which could speak any English. Switzerland is noted for its treatment of tourists but I was determined to outswiss the Swiss. Everything went off like (Swiss?) clockwork. Their entire time was organized but flexible and even the weather co­ operated. Our visitors were delighted at their reception and went home thinking that things were great here after all. That is precisely the point I was trying to make. Business, too, have to get their act together. A low exchange rate will do only so much for you; the rest has to be great quality and service. It has been interesting maybe not. I'm beginning to think that interviewing prospective employees may be one of the toughest gigs a guy can draw. I have in front of me a list compiled from a survey conducted by the International Association of Corporate and Professiona.l Recruiters. The Association asked its 600 members to list some of the more "unusual questions" they'd been asked by people looking for a job. Here's a few of the choice ones: "Why am I here?" "Why aren't you in a more interesting business?" "What are the zodiac signs of all the board members and their wives?" "What is it that you people do at this company?" "Would it be a problem if I'm angry most of the time?" "Does the company have a policy regarding whether employees can carry guns?" "Will the company pay for moving my two-ton rock garden from California to Maryland?" And my favourite: "I know this is off the subject, but will you marry me?" Puts a whole new perspective on that beady-eyed guy sitting on the other side of the Personnel Desk, doesn't it? Yessir . . . I've been a roofer, a sailor, a cattle prodder and a bartender, but I’ve never been a Personnel Recruiter and I'm glad of it. I don't think I'm tough enough. to note that some Canadian companies, which had moved to either the United States or Mexico, are discovering that they don't have to go elsewhere to provide this to their foreign customers; they can do this better at home. Let me cite one example. In 1988 Fleck Manufacturing, of Huron Park, came in for a goodly share of opprobrium for shutting up its plant at the former Centralia air base and moving everything to Mexico. What is not nearly as well known is that it shortly after moved one of its plants from Mexico to Canada (Tillsonburg to be precise) and is able to give its customers better quality and faster service. This is not an isolated example, by the way. We do, however, have to be nimble on our feet to keep up with all the competition but isn't that what our system is all about? Customers' tastes change elsewhere just as they do here and we have to react to that. It pleases me no end to read about a small Canadian company, and there are plenty in all provinces, who are able to tum out a quality product and sell it to foreign customers. I have recently come back from a business trip to the Atlantic Provinces; while I was there, I ran across a small company in Prince Edward Island which was bringing in fish and smoking it in such a way that it had attracted favourable attention from such large customers as Delta Airlines in Atlanta, Ga. The owner was not resting on his laurels; he reported that his American competition was trying to get this customer back; so far he had kept ahead of the game. It always delights me to come across such successes if only to offset all the doom and gloom that permeates our thinking in this country. It's a never-ending battle! I Mt CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 1 ,1992. PAGE 5. TheShort of it By Bonnie Gropp From 67 to 92, not a change for the better Today is Canada's quasicentennial, which I will probably remember better than its last milestone. I was a Grade eight student in Listowel when Canada celebrated its centennial in 1967, (That made me 13 for anyone, trying to figure it out) so don’t have many vivid memories of what was happening. I remember the Expo '67 trailer coming to the park and our class getting lime out from school to go visit it. I remember some students getting excited about going to the exhibition in Montreal, but as I was not one of them, that momentous occurrence was shrugged off my shoulders with the flippancy that comes from being too young to care about something you weren't part of. What I remember more about that year is the way things seemed to me. Life in 1967 was, to me, easier. Perhaps it’s selective memory, but even with the racial tensions that existed, the ever growing feminist movement and hostilities over the Viet Nam war heating, 1967 seemed a pretty remarkable time to live - for a child anyway. Life in 1992 has, quite simply, become loo complicated, even for the young. We must teach them to love thy neighbour, but remember that even a friend can be a stranger. Whereas the 60's were a time of love and peace, we are now in a time when it is virtually unsafe for women to walk alone or for anyone to come to the aid of a stranger. We can't protect ourselves or our children too much. As a youngster I and my friends had free rein. Today, trying to keep a watchful eye over our exuberant children is a full-time job. And even that isn't enough, when you think of a recent incident where a mother had to literally fight off an alleged abductor. And nowhere is it more important for people to learn, than in our multi-cultural nation, that all are created equal. Yet all the while it appears we must come to terms with a reverse rascism in our society that is ludicrous. If we truly want to leam to get along together it should not be at the expense of white, Anglo males. Discrimination was, and is, wrong. But so is overcompensation. In Waterloo Region white males will apparently need a mark 10 percent higher than women or minorities on the qualifying test for the fire department. What ever happened to the best person for the job? Someone recently told me about an application form they filled out. Their qualifications were not important, just race, gender, etc. Some police detachments no longer have strictly black silhouettes for their target practises; they use white during the day and black at night. This is a harmless change, that perhaps demonstrates sensitivity, however, why did it have to be? Silhouettes, represent shadows, which are dark regardless of race. I can't help wondering - would the question of possible sensitivity have come up if they had been using white to begin with? I wish, in the future, when I think back to Canada's 125th birthday it would be with the same good feeling I have when I remember the time of the centennial celebration. Still , an idealist, I believe that the majority of people in this country are fair and just and all want the same things for each other. I still believe that this is the best place in the world to be and I'd like to believe that when my children grow up it still will be. If there is as much change in the next 25 years ihere won't be much to celebrate.