Underemployment just became more popular

How Employment Insurance changes will affect your job search | CanadianBusiness.com

Recent changes to EI eligibility made it compulsory for people to seek low-paying jobs aka McJobs before filing for unemployment benefits. This is the wheel that new Graduates often get stuck in: “Part-time job or 2 part-time jobs to offset the amount of hours that was available to you on one job. “ This may severely slow down the suitable job search for the candidate and result in a longer professional work break between jobs, which increases the risk of having to change career-path, regardless of how unwelcome it may be.

This is highly alarming, as I would expect to have some kind of benefit after I pay for EI throughout my employed period. Looking at this policy change in combination with the abolishment of the mandatory retirement, I am becoming concerned about the financial ability of the government to pay what they “owe” to the working people. You pay for what you don’t get it’s becoming like yet another insurance scam – auto, extended warranty and now employment insurances.  

If this was not the push to treat oneself like a business I don’t know what would do it. I feel like the most appropriate strategy in this job market is to take on finite employment obligations like contracts and always stay looking for the next opportunity, or even open up your own business/practice.

@safinr trying to answer #Google #interviewquestions

I'm going to have to stop you right there, we know what you did last summer

I thought I'd test myself with these puzzles that became famous because Google used them in their interviews. I find them to be rather cruel and unusual punishment to have people try to answer these on the spot, but if it's suitable anywhere, it's suitable at the almighty El Goog.
I found these questions here: http://www.businessinsider.com/15-google-interview-questions-that-will-make-you-feel-stupid-2010-11#in-a-country-in-which-people-only-want-boys-3

In a country in which people only want boys…

…every family continues to have children until they have a boy. If they have a girl, they have another child. If they have a boy, they stop. What is the proportion of boys to girls in the country?
Job: Product Manager

Train of thoughts: So this is a probability question which seems hard at first, but once you start breaking it down it really crumbles quite nicely. First thing is crucial, the number of families = number of boys. Then you look at the probabilities, and you can draw up a little tree to make the answer come to you visually. There's 50 percent chance that the family will not have a boy and hence keep conceiving, then after that there's 50 percent chance that they will keep on conceiving and it's starts to look like a factor tree of an integer if you substitute probabilities with an actual or a sample number of families. You realize that the number of girls being born will always get reduced by half until it eventually reaches 0, when you add it up it will equal the number of boys.  
Answer: 1

How many piano tuners are there in the entire world?

Job: Product Manager

Train of thoughts: What classifies a piano tuner, it potentially could be anyone who owns the piano.
Answer: As many as there are pianos (C'mon Google this is just too easy)

How many times a day does a clock’s hands overlap?

Job: Product Manager

Train of thoughts: Let's assume that there are Hour, Minute and Seconds hands. They all overall only when Hour and Minute hands overlap, as Seconds hand is the fastest one. Minute hand overlaps with Hour only once an hour, which would make the total 24.
Answer: 24

Let's stop with 3 questions. I think I answered these questions pretty well, if you think that I have failed somewhere, you can contact me @safinr or troll away here. This product manager interview seems pretty easy, I am looking forward hearing from Google recruiters in the near future. :)