how NOT to get a job
The following thread of emails is currently being sent around to all my Dubai agency friends. It’s an exchange between a job applicant and the potential employer (who happens to be my friend.) I have reformatted it and removed some names and email addresses. I ordered it chronologically because reading threads from the bottom up can be quite annoying.
(Yousef has posted the thread on his company’s blog as well, but in the original reverse-threaded order.)
The guy “Mike” is my good friend, owner of his own successful creative agency in Dubai, and generally a very reasonable guy. Amir Saffar is trying to get a job as a web developer, designer, etc. This is one of the best examples ever of how NOT go about it. It’s sort of hard to believe that this is real. But it is, I can assure you.
DO NOT hire this prick under any circumstances. And remember, Amir is not a Paki, but he is a racist.
—————————————
From: Amir Saffar [amirsaffarr@yahoo.com]
Sent: 02 December 2006 01:22
To: –removed–
Subject: multimediator/web designer position
Amir Saffar
–address removed–
Toronto, Canada
amirsaffarr@yahoo.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I am a web developer/designer with experience in designing corporate, commercial, retail, and business web systems. With more than 6 years experience designing Internet/multimedia systems professionally in a production environment, I could be a valuable asset to your web design and multimedia team.
Managing projects, task delegation, and client relations have been necessary skills at my previous employment positions. These have always been tasks that I excel at and enjoy.
My experience in web site consultation critiquing usability, functionality, aesthetics, and search engine placement can help clients with their existing web content by introducing them to innovative and cost-effective solutions.
My enthusiasm, creativity, communication skills and ability to work without supervision are my strong points. I have extensive design experience using Flash, Dreamweaver, HTML, CSS, VB, C#, SQL, Photoshop, Illustrator, QuarkXPress, 3dsMax, and other programs. I would be able to create a dynamic company presence for you on the Internet.
I am currently on vacation for two months in the region. Since I have a Canadian
passport, traveling to the UAE would not be an issue for me at all. I also have to mention that since I have lived in a multicultural country and because of my background, I have been trained to work with people who have different cultures and backgrounds. Therefore I hope my experience in this field could be a valuable asset to your company.
I would welcome an opportunity to discuss my qualifications and experience in greater detail. I am available for an interview at your convenience.
Sincerely,
Amir Saffar
—————————————
[Mike] wrote:
Hi Amir
Thanks for sending us your CV we’d certainly be interested in speaking with you. Just to clarify, are you planning to visit Dubai during your vacation? If not, perhaps we can arrange to speak over the phone.
Regards,
Mike Platts
Creative Partner, North55 Dubai
—————————————
From: Amir Saffar [amirsaffarr@yahoo.com]
Sent: 11 December 2006 00:18
To: Mike Platts
Subject: RE: hi again
Hi again,
I guess people work for free in Dubai. Am I correct!??
take care
Amir
—————————————
[Mike] wrote:
Sorry, you’ve completely lost me there how did I imply that people ‘work for free’ in Dubai?
Mike.
—————————————
From: Amir Saffar
To: Mike Platts
Sent: Friday, December 15, 2006 9:11 PM
Subject: RE: hi again
it’s very simple Mike. You are interested in my profile and i wanted to know how much you were able to pay. no response means: you either can’t pay that much,
or you only hire indians and pakistanis who don’t ask for a good salary.
but dude, i am neither indian or paki and i have never worked for less than
2000 usd/month. You got it now!?
Amir
—————————————
[Mike] wrote:
Jesus, that’s some chip you’ve got on your shoulder there pal. Before the email I received on 11th December, I’d only gotten one from you – the first, which included your CV. As far as I can see, it didn’t mention money. If you sent another after that, then sorry, but I didn’t get it, which is why I didn’t reply.
Anyway, it’s all worked out well. I wouldn’t want a bigotted arsehole like you working with us, and I’m sure that the Indians and Pakis who work at North55 – most of whom earn more than US$2,000 a month, some by a factor of three – are glad that they won’t have to put up with your small-minded bullshit either. The Brits, South Africans and Canadians will probably be pretty cock-a-hoop too.
Best of luck finding a job in Dubai – I’m sure you’ll get exactly the kind of position you deserve.
Cheers,
Mike
—————————————
From: Amir Saffar
To: Mike Platts
Sent: Saturday, December 16, 2006 10:39 PM
Subject: got it?
i’m sending this e-mail twice. i wanna make sure you get it this time!!
2000 USD/month is a joke bro. I got paid that much when I graduated from College/without any exp.
I’m pretty sure most of you guys work at coffee shops when you finish your work at the studio.
What doesn’t make sense to me is, why would a guy from N America or Europe want to work for that amount. Perhaps you’ve had a low paid job back home and you are satisfied with 2000 USD! weren’t you a cleaner/or a security guard…Mike!?
—————————————
[Mike] wrote:
You really are an irritating little troll aren’t you? You can barely write English, and you seem to have a problem reading it too. So I’ll break it down for you: not. wanted. here.
Now fuck off.
All the best,
Mike.
PS – I’ve taking the liberty of copying some of my colleagues in the industry here, just in case they too should have the misfortune of hearing from you. I’m sure they’d be kind enough to forward it on to their pals, too, and with any luck you’ll be back fucking moose in time for Christmas. (Oh, and by the way, if you’re such hot shit, why the reluctance to include a link to any of your work in your CV? So you’ve got six years’ experience – big deal. You don’t seem to have been able to hold down a job for too long – or were they short-term cleaner/security guard contracts?)
—————————————
From: Sofian (senior agency person)
Sent: Sunday, December 17, 2006 11:28 AM
To: Mike Platts; Amir Saffar
Cc: —removed, but it WAS every agency person we knew—
Subject: Re: got it?
Brilliant. Appreciate the forward mike. What a pleb, ey?
So you finally go the passport Amir, ha? By the way, no one gives a small fuck about your passport or race here if you know what you’re doing, obviously you don’t. Send me a link of your work, I’m interested in your achievements, NOT!
All the best canadian Amir.
I’ll make sure I forward this to friends in agencies.
Sofian –last name removed–
Managing partner –company removed–
—————————————
From: Yousef (another senior agency guy)
Sent: 17 December 2006 11:36
To: —removed, but everyone else we know—
Subject: RE: got it?
I’ve added it to the Flip blog, too – http://www.flipblogspot.com/ – Mike’s sent him an email to let him know.
Regards,
-YTT
Just for the sake of completeness, our friend’s parting shots:
That is absolutely mind boggling and Amir should be hit by a bus. What a douchebag!
Mike, I commend your patience and professionalism.
Thanks Jay, I appreciate that. Mind, I’m not entirely sure that asking him to fuck off and shag a moose really demonstrates either!
I love how his cover letter says “I also have to mention that since I have lived in a multicultural country and because of my background, I have been trained to work with people who have different cultures and backgrounds.”
Priceless!
Mike, everyone has his or her breaking point. You held your ground and that’s what counts.
I work in recruitment and read applications all day… you would be amazed at how many people write themselves into the shredding bin with the sort of arrogance that this guy has. My job is endlessly entertaining. Especially when some of these idiots get to interview (not because I short-listed them!) and you ask them to give an actual example to substantiate claims like “My experience in web site consultation critiquing usability, functionality, aesthetics, and search engine placement can help clients with their existing web content by introducing them to innovative and cost-effective solutions” and they look at you with an expression that says “fuuuuuuuuck” As a recruitment consultant, I live for those moments.
Ditto. Douchebag. Great replies, from Mike. True comedic material.
Dear Amir,
I am very impressed by your aggression. I would like to offer you a job in my country. I will pay you ZIM$20000 each month. Please let me know if you are interested.
Festus Marimba
Minister of Prime
Zimbabwe
That really is amazing. I’d love to hear it from Amir’s side. . was there another email regarding the money? What was he thinking? Is he insane??? Hehe
Thanks for the entertainment.
Where do it imply that Mr Saffar is a racist? Nowhere, it doesn’t. He used indians and pakis as an example of underpaid workers, which is unfortunately true in western countries. That’s not racist.
However Dubai is a racist place. All the huge buildings were built by poor immigrants that are underpaid or even not paid at all and note how Mike points out that Mr Saffar “can barely write english”, THAT seems hypocritical to me.
Furthermore, I wouldn’t want to work for a company that uses words like “fuck off” in job conversations.
Stop decrying Mr Saffar.
Its not good to judge a person is there are some missing links, here few mails in between are missing. Of Course, it was aggressiveness from Amir’s side, so he deserves some answers of this kind.
Now about Dubai, almost all countries have racist behaviours, and its because of people working there. If it is forbidden by law, it still happens tacitly. I have been working in different countries, even US and UK, and I see favourism towards Americans and British people there too. Its human nature to favour those who are closer to them in culture, language or etnicity. Not all people do it, but in an organisation there is a mix of peoples who support and who dont. It will go away with time, you just cant eliminate it by law, it has to be an attitude.
About underpaid workers, they work there because they get lot more than what they could in their own country.
While it is true that many people work in dubai with poor pay and horrible living conditions, Mr.Amir can’t assume that a person who hires “web developer” etc would be working at two jobs one at coffee shop and one at some other place. I don’t even know why Mr.Amir had to bring that topic up. Hilarious though. I agree with Anita. I wouldn’t work at a company where “fuck off” and “arse hole” are common words in emails. I think both people lost their ground during their conversation.
Clearly, Anita must be Amir’s girlfriend.
This Amir guy if not a fake, sounds like an arab who migrated and now thinks he is better than everyone else because hes gotta passport titled Canada. But what blows my mind is how he makes fun of the pay in Dubai when he is on USD$24000 a year! what a moron.
>Anita
Yes Dubai is a racist place, and your name is Amir no?
GTFO
Chris/Others,
BTW, Paki is a derogatory term. A racist slur. Much like using the N word. I’ll assume that it is pure ignorance on your part not racism.
-S
[...] You can read the whole thing here: http://www.chrisdiclerico.com/2006/12/17/how-not-to-get-a-job/ [...]
What a sad inditement to see a company resort to unprofessional viral bullshit just to branch out it’s name on the global arena, especially hitting the web2.0 newsstands.
I don’t know who is more humbled in this instance. North55 or Amir. Neither. Obviously. Unprofessional conduct whether this is true or false.
How can you even broadcast this tripe and try and one up yourselves. The internet is neither the forum nor the resolution to solving any human resourcing woes.
Hope the view looks good from your ivory towers. You’ve completely lost respect from me.
Anita,
You seem to really like Mr Saffar, so why don’t YOU offer him a job!
…But in the end when he pisses off all your customers and other staff, and all that is left is YOU and HIM. Don’t you dare sit there and wonder what happened.
[...] Congratulations – you’re famous: http://www.chrisdiclerico.com/2006/12/17/how-not-to-get-a-job/ http://www.flipblogspot.com/2006/12/17/amir-saffar-and-north55 [...]
Anita,
“Where do it imply that Mr Saffar is a racist?”
Well, that would be in Mr. Saffar’s third email to Mr. Platts, in which he states “…you only hire indians and pakistanis who don’t ask for a good salary. but dude, i am neither indian or paki…” His phrasing isn’t that of a person referencing an example. It’s the phrasing of a racist.
I do not think you are qualified be pointing out whether or not Mr. Platts is fit to comment on Mr. Saffar’s literacy. Your own opening sentence would give an English teacher a migrane.
“Furthermore, I wouldn’t want to work for a company that uses words like “fuck off” in job conversations.”
Mr. Platts was no longer having a job conversation. Mr. Saffar had eliminated himself from consideration. Mr. Platts intended for Mr. Saffar to not want to work for him at the time he sent those remarks. In my own opinion, Mr. Platts delivered such words in as professional a manner as Mr. Saffar warranted, and then some.
You know, it’s somewhere between funny and sad, probably firmly in the realm of irony, that Mr. Saffar has now become famous enough that any future Google search on his name by a prospective employer will likely eliminate him from consideration for employment.
He, himself, may now be forced to seek employment as a:
Actually, Anita….calling someone a “Paki” is fairly inappropriate-in-polite-convesation, at least in the UK (I like in the US, so I may be mistaken, but I have a friend who was *quite* offended by such a comment.) Indian and Pakistani tech workers are not underpaid in western countries…I think you’re thinking of the fact that many companies send work to India and Pakistan because they can pay workers less there — because (amongst other reasons) thecost of living is significantly less there. But I don’t know of a single example of an immigrant employee working alongside native-born employees for significantly less. That would be a lawsuit waiting to happen.
Anita: Accusing foreign workers of working for less money and therefore undercutting the salaries of natives is an old racist tactic, particularly used against workers from the Indian subcontinent. And whether or not Dubai is a “racist place” because it uses the cheapest labor available to it–pretty much standard operating procedure in almost every country in the world–it didn’t bother Saffar, who initiated the contact with Dubai, as long as he was paid well.
There are probably any number of companies whose representatives would use “fuck off” if pushed hard enough in what had long ceased to be a “job conversation”. If you don’t want to work for them–great! More jobs for the rest of us that have a minimum of decent manners.
[...] Original story link Digg link Alternate post 1 Alternate post 2 [...]
http://www.thedubailife.com/index.php/main/blog/how_not_to_apply_for_a_job_in_dubai
Yep saw this on http://www.digg.com this morning
Amir’s very first comment (“I guess people work for free in Dubai”) was a completely unprovoked attack. Money had not been mentioned before that. He went from zero to jerk in no time flat. There can be no defending that. At least he revealed his true self before Mike had to waste any more time and money on it.
Mr. Amir’s comments *really* anger me as a Canadian. Most Canadians are peace loving, and very tollerant of other cultures and peoples.
Amir is exactly the kind of person devoid of the very skills he so nonchalently announces which is evident from the dialogue between the twerp and Mike. In London, this story is circulating through the news and I have come across the article (highly enjoyable read at that!) through the free morning paper ‘Metro’ and intend to pass on the word further. It might sound a bit cruel but Amir really put his foot on it and deserves no less than whats happening to him.
If there was a Darwin Award for Contributions to Your Industry 2007, this plonker would be assured of a place… Ha!
Hi,
About 12 million people in London UK will have read this story this morning in their newspapers. A man so gifted in cr*p communication must surely have a wonderful career ahead of them – I’m just not sure which planet it would be on?
What a laugh!
Interesting – if the gentleman were ever to require the services of a Security Guard who had read his rantings.
I can’t take this seriously. Amir appears to be nothing short of a troll (as suggested by Mike; “You really are an irritating little troll aren’t you?”). I doubt the job application was legitimate to begin with. Considering this hit my local paper in Dublin I think he accomplished the notoriety which he was looking for. He can easily drop the yahoo address and fake name and move on. The original application was likely taken from one of the many impressive cvs available online in order to bait Mike. It was an entirely successful troll and I’m disappointed in North55’s response. He should have shown more restraint and not taken the ignorance of a stranger so personally.
As a company I would not be promoting such a response.
Mike: A guy in a top position would always keep his cool.
Mr. Amir appears to have been already agitated by the time he sent his second email with the completely unprovoked attack on Mr. Watts. Perhaps he has a history of being rejected, and from Mr. Watts comments about the short terms of employment on his CV this is reinforced. I suspect that Mr. Amir is probably suffering from delusions of received racism, and suggests this in his comment about not being a Paki or Indian, perhaps thinking that his name gives the impression to people that he is. If anything he sounds to me like the sort of religious zealot who takes offense at everything and attacks without provocation or true reason. I think the saying goes something like …”self fulfilling prophecy”. He is creating hardship for himself and fulfilling his incorrect belief that everyone is racist and won’t want to employee him. Sadly too many people suffer from this these days. You only have to look at the way some of the minority cultures and religious groups behave in the UK. I hope Mr. Amir finds some sort of peace because he is exactly the type of person who could easily be fooled into thinking that carrying a bomb onto a plane is a good idea to get revenge for the imagined wrongs done against him. I would never tell any perspective employee to ‘fxck off’ but I understand Mr. Watts surprise at the emails he received. Mr. Amir, I suggest some counseling to resolve your issues of aggression and think before you act next time.
If anyones the racist it would be Your mate: Mike:
“and I’m sure that the Indians and Pakis who work at North55 -”
What is that? “Pakis”, its actually Pakistanis.
If Mike is the boss of a company or one of the top guys, well how unprofessional of him to keep replying and swearing. I dont recall Amir swearing as much. But I dont encourage his response either.
If this is made up then nice way of getting the attn. No top punk would talk like that, he would be in that position as he will know how to keep his calm.
!
ur friends must be stupid to blog for u and encourage u in ur foolishness. top boss. congratulations to Amir for not replying, dude DONT even get involved! I dont think he actually wanted a job, but wanted some sort of feedback on the £ issue.
And as for Mike. You must think your superior to all. Why do you work in Dubai. Go back to YOUR country!
did u like that? Im sure u didnt.
The freakshow above clearly cannot spell. Amir or one of his retarded friends making these comments.
simon:
I wish you had more of a mind. it suprises the amount of people who have an education (im making a random guess here that you might be educated) have such a narrowmind.
“Sadly too many people suffer from this these days. You only have to look at the way some of the minority cultures and religious groups behave in the UK. I hope Mr. Amir finds some sort of peace because he is exactly the type of person who could easily be fooled into thinking that carrying a bomb onto a plane is a good idea to get revenge for the imagined wrongs done against him”
Sadly for you, you cant see the ills of the western world.
Me: Great input prick.
In situations like these you really get to see whos really racist and who is dumb. and frankly “ME” you fall in the category of both.
Congratulations.
Dick
This is a good example not to argue with an idiot…
After a wile the people wont be able to tell the difference.
Oh dear.
I work with disadvantaged people, who by their circumstances find themselves unemployed and down on their luck. One of the primary barriers they face in getting back to work is the level of their communitcation skills and the effort it takes them to effectively articulate their point of view.
A lot of it has to do with their backgrounds: poverty, education, substance abuse or family circumstances. I come across ‘Amir’-type behaviour all the time, and read applications as described by Trish, but that’s a given, considering the group of people I work with.
Getting the same tripe from someone who was earning US$ 2,000 right after graduating says a lot about the institution he graduated from.
Besides, what is US$ 2,000? Around £ 1,000? A cleaner makes that here in the UK.
Amir: You’re sad and pathetic and you got what you deserve.
Mike: Well done.
This is really funny and sad at the same time…sad that human race hasn’t actually evolved so much in the last 100 years that we all seem to get bent out of shape with comments left and made by total strangers. No wonder there are very few people left in the world that have a characteristic called ‘tolerance’.
Amir…best of luck with the job search. I work in HR and believe me if someone mentioned salary before the initial interview took place, I would more than likely not interview them at all.
Mike…”irritating little troll” is a phrase most people would like to use on a daily basis when dealing with people of this nature.
SB London.
A wise man will probably have said…………….Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelaaaaaaaaaaxxxxxxxxxxxx.
This is spinning out of control! There are now people using this to comment and create negativity on each others social worlds!
I quote ‘Sadly for you, you can’t see the ills of the western world’.
There are no ills in our (whole) world, only differences of opinion, whether that is political, religous or education!
Every single person on the planet is entitled to an opinion and it is up to each and every one of us to be mature enough to be able to discuss things in a non threatening manner.
It saddens me to see the original emails and the subsequent ones. This is exactly what the media world needs and feeds on…….Not good, it just creates more negativity, uneccessary and unsubstantiated anger/ hate.
Learn to understand one another and treat others as they would expect to be treated.
Warm Regards to one and all
Wise Man
very funny thread! what is funnier is Amir thinks he has a right to a highly paid job in Dubai! Muppet.. Being East Indian I do not think Mike was being racist at all just responding to the Canarsedians stupid emails..
Can I get a job? –Just kidding. I’ve met some really nice people while trying to get a job, but never have I seen such a jerk. That Amir fellow is quite pushy and demanding. Though he doesn’t seem to be too interested in the job, he seems a little fed up to the point it seems like this is not his first encounter. He must’ve been applying for jobs all over and not getting anywhere thus allowing this to just push over the threshold causing his rage to just occur. A little piece of advice to him, recollect his thoughts and just stay positive and oh my god, get a real translator!
I am sure the email response would have been the same if our friend was white, black, orange (sorry Essex girls
), or purple.
**If anyones the racist it would be Your mate: Mike:
“and I’m sure that the Indians and Pakis who work at North55 -”
What is that? “Pakis”, its actually Pakistanis.
If Mike is the boss of a company or one of the top guys, well how unprofessional of him to keep replying and swearing.
**
Just to add to the above …. if someone is going to circulate hate mail they received maybe they shouldnt encourage the use of names which may offend people….just play it safe…sorry i just have a brain and am surprised at the ignorance of both parties….
Laugh? yes I did.
What a sad reflection on Amir, if he was genuine at all, that having been offered a chance at interview he abused the interviewer at the first possible opportunity.
I happen to believe a job is a privilege not a right and even if you think the person in charge is wrong, mistaken, ignorant, stupid or whatever you give yourself a chance of getting the job you’re applying for.
Well done Mike, contrary to some of the comments here I think your company must be a great place top work.
Isn’t this all great fun!
Mike – can’t blame you for getting annoyed
To ‘Paki’: you are are the epitome of what is so frustrating to so many of us in this politically correct age, you try and substantiate your own xenophobic/rascist rantings by masking it as a defense against some immagined rascist attack – you are trying to make yourself out to be the victim when you are are quite clearly the aggressor – for gods sake just chill out! – no one was having a go at Amir because of a race issue they were having a go at him because he is a pratt!
And to the person who left the Festus Marimba, Prime Minister of Zimbabwe blog: genius!
Lol, very funny what can happen when emails aren’t received! As a web designer/3d artist, it cracks me up to see how people try to compete for status when the work should speak for its self – Amir clearly has taken some template when he wrote his first email as later its clear he doesn’t have such good writing skills nor the skills he claims to have! Always go on the portfolio – differentiates the dedicated and hard workers from the rest.
There are always two sides to every story and you can find out Amir’s side on telephone no. + 1 416 516 7279>> E-mail: amirsaffarr@yahoo.com
Well, this is how I see it, the bloke who calls himself Amir Saffar is a complete tit, excuse the language.
I’m a blue-collar worker, working in a s**thole. Before tax etc, my pay packet says I earn an average of £1900 per month, taking home an average of £1400 per month, without overtime and bonus, not too bad, for a dive.
Six years ago, I paid off my mortgage, rent-free for life suckers, had brand new BMW, Honda, Yamaha motorbikes too. Travelled across Europe and been to The Ritz, Paris, Athens and the US’.
My point; it isn’t what you earn its how you spend it that says who you are, well Mr. Saffer, as you are on the verge of mass employment (ha, ha), does that mean that you are a nobody?
(Email not to be used for spamming or without permission too).
Gah…. Way to hurt your company. I’m sure North55 is getting tons of negative exposure over Mike’s posting this to public forums. I personally would never hire out to a company that was so rude and unprofessional.
Second… Amir.. To insult a race, or culture, how ignorant are you. You deserve what you get. Why not post your side of the story somewhere.
But even worse, if you read this, you can tell that there are emails missing. Each response is usally a day or 2 apart, and there are no dates/times on any of Mikes Emails. That in itself looks suspecious. But, between the happyness part of it, and where it all blows up, is between a 9 day gap in talking to one another. I’m guessing that ‘Mike’ lowballed an offer to him for around 2000USD a month, and Amir countered that as an insult… Mike came back and said, well, thats what the avg pay is for workers in Dubia for new employees, blah blah blah… But that part never made it to the website.
Anyways,
When all was said and done, Amir looks bad, and Mike looks unprofessional. But I’ll tell you this, I’ll be discussing this Saturday Night on Krushradio.com when i Do my show (10:00pm EST) Hey, they wanted to be famous….lets make them famous. And yes, for those who know me, they are both going to be featured on my Dumbass report.
~DocNasty
~Krushradio.com
To the individual (“Paki”, about the 34th comment) who accuses Mike of racism – HE WAS QUOTING THE MAIN’S EMAIL BACK AT HIM, YOU DOLT! Offended by the use of the term, he used Saffir’s own words as a mirror to reflect the bigotry in them.
Read the exchange properly before you fling such mud, matey.
I read this article with great amusement in the metro in London this morning. Half the world must know about this twit by now. Amir Saffir got everything he deserved! Okay, so Mike may have been a little impulsive with his responses but you could hardly blame the man! By that stage any leaning toward political correctness had gone out the window! It was a completely un-provoked attack through reasoning. I think Simon’s psychoanalysis (above) may have some substance, this individual seems to have a major chip on his shoulder and could no doubt end up as a potential ‘bomber’. I have no doubt that aggressive, egotistical, over-demanding and bigoted twits like Amir manage to ‘fall through the cracks’ in term of employment and land good jobs through fabricated and over-zealous c.vs.. only to wreak havok on their new workplace with their horrible, aggressive attitudes. Many other staff are reluctant to complain, and thus a company that hires a typical ‘Amir’ ends up losing good staff when they can no longer stand to be around a twit like him. People like ‘Paki’ make me sick – how dare he try and turn an observation about one individual into a perceived race hate theme? You are the type of person who will use anything you can in this world to try and decipher a racist tinge out of it. Get a goddamm life!! And secondly get your facts right: To suggest that Indians and Pakistanis get lower salaries that westerners in the western world(!!!??). I think both yourself and Amir need to attend the same counselling session. If you are so against the western world, why don’t you just leave..I’m sure we won’t miss you..
I laughed out loud when I read this on the train coming home from Coydon this evening, in the “Metro”. I do think it was a bit harsh to put Amir’s real name on the web though – after all he is still relatively young and we all mess it up from time to time.
But the post from “Paki” above it truly scary. If this thread had been about anything at all, (for example cornflakes, income tax or my per hamster), I get the impression his comments about the faults of the “Western world” (Alert! Alert! Fundamentalist warning! Whoop! Whoop!) would have come out anyway. (Deep sigh, change channel).
The whole exchange reminds me of an Ancient proverb: never wrestle with a pig. You both get muddy and the pig enjoys it.
HAHAHAHA, sorry to evry1 this offends (actualli i dnt reeli care =P), this whole situation is fucking hillarious! hahaha Mike is a JOKA!
“not. wanted. here.
Now fuck off.”
hahahahaha lmaoo!!! omds… good stuff
This is very sad. Amir and Mike are both as bad as each other. Two big egos collide here. This is just another case of Bush and Sadam.
Amir’s response has been very poor and Mike has been much more shocking. This really was a conversation between these 2 individuals and Mike should have really handled this himself instead of relying on his colleagues.
Props to Mike. Nothing in this exchange suggests to me that he is anything other than a sound individual and perfectly professional when it is called for. I’m flabbergasted that anyone should take Amir for anything other than the unreasonable, arrogant and objectionable character that he clearly is.
Just wanted to say that Amir is probably dyslexic. First, he doesn’t have a strong command of English. Second, he doesn’t know how to read the emails from Mike.
On the other hand, as a mature adult, Mike shouldn’t have succumb to Amir’s immaturity and replied to him on several occasions. If I were Mike, I would have just ignore Amir’s emails. A person who is seeking for a job opportunity shouldn’t think that he’s the greatest in the world. If you are asking a favour from someone, then make sure you sound polite! Being rude and making nasty comments about others will not get you anywhere.
No one is right in this case, as both have become immature adults at the end of the whole conversation.
For Christ’s sake can we please stop the ‘racist’ crap ??
‘Paki’ is not a racist insult…… it is an ABBREIVIATION of the work ‘Pakistani’…. the same as ‘Brit’ is short for British and ‘Aussie’ is short for Australian etc…. these nationalities don’t take offence !!
Why does everything in this world have to turn into a ‘racist outcry’ ????
Where I’m from P*ki is a racist term – often used by people who pretend they’re not racist.
It’s also a term that the Asian community uses (rightly or wrongly) in a bid to reclaim it.
I wish people would understand more about the language they are using. That way they could see why some words are affensive and wouldn’t have to suggest it was “political correctness gone mad” (the last battlecry of the outdated bigot).
If Amir came across badly in those e-mails, Mike faired no better.
I am partly Middle Eastern and whilst I have been blessed with “mixed race” parents I find it hard to read how people like Amir Saffar can stereotype people in the manner he did. Certainly his remarks are offensive and can only be described as raciest.
Whilst I believe that one of the problems in the world today is to do with so called “middle men” (people really as I do not wish to be labelled as sexiest !) such as Agencies, I have to take my hat off to you guys. The best thing about all of this is your use of TECHNOLOGY to expose Amir, and also highlight his inadequacy as an IT guru in foreseeing this. Clearly Amir is no more than an “upgraded typist” and has not the making of an analyst or consultant as yet, if ever.
The world we live in is ever so small with the use of TECHNOLOGY and the IT industry is even smaller. Poor old Amir, if I was him, I’d either change my name or leave the industry, oh, and get a mirror to have a really CLOSE look at himself.
Everyone’s a little bit racist; it’s not wallowing in the racism that’s important. There’s no point in deflecting the discussion to Mike’s shorthand use of “Pakis” simply because it’s not on point: Amir’s appreciation of the medium of communication is lacking. That is the point.
Email is a fragile medium. Fragile because whole messages can be lost, and fragile because expectations are not communicated by microgestures and postures and facial expressions.
Amir may be very talented. I wouldn’t want to work with him. Mike, on the other hand, seems like a grounded guy, if a bit vindictive. But I would say that his publishing of the sequence of emails is certainly within the bounds of civilized behavior: giving notice that an enemy or predator is in the neighborhood is generally considered a friendly act.
Hilarious stuff.
I think Mike and Amir should meet and see what happens. It could be the beginning of something beautiful…
Top marks to Mike… I have never read something as funny as “not. wanted. here. Now fuck off”!
And I don’t think it was unprofessional. Amir – if he even exists – was clearly out of contention and fired the first shot.
Doc Nasty, no offence, but it seems you havn’t read the correspondence properly. If you had of then you would know that Amir made the response about salary (in the most freakish and inappropriate of ways) to Mike after he had expected Mike to be a mind-reader or subliminally decipher a question out of Amir’s previous email that did not even mention a question of salary! It also seems a bit hypocritical of you to slam the company for doing this, and then turn around and use it as a way of shamelessly plugging your radio spot for much needed ratings. Clearly this was your prime intention, as otherwise if you were serious about discussing the issue you would of read the thread properly in the first place. Needless to say I did not tune in..
“Bronwyn Harris”
What an ignorant individual you are, politically correct- not i think.
“this individual seems to have a major chip on his shoulder and could no doubt end up as a potential ‘bomber’.”
and then you said
“People like ‘Paki’ make me sick – how dare he try and turn an observation about one individual into a perceived race hate theme? ”
Western world. you want to protect? The funny thing is you say exactly what you mean otherwise why on earth would you steer the convo to a bomber theme. because the email talks about ethnicity. how pathetic of you.
To your last comment
“If you are so against the western world, why don’t you just leave..I’m sure we won’t miss you.. ”
Why shouldnt Mike leave the Eastern world?
just as “nigger” would be taken as an offensive term so would “paki” and we all know how “paki” has been used in the past.
Really people, open your eyes.
and as mentioned above im sure original emails have been emitted out of the blog.
Paki, answer me one question, Why do the Brits and the Ozzy’s not mind being referred to as such. What makes it oh so more racist to refer to a Pakistani as a Paki. Now if they had said ‘dune koon’ or something along the likes then I would understand. Get over your repressed self
Look, I don’t know if you people use a different slang or what. In many parts of the world (or maybe just Britain) calling a person from India, Pakistan, East Indies, etc a PAKI is the same as calling a black man a N***ER or a far eastern man a C***K or a white man a C****ER. It’s best to know what you’re talking about before making a comment!
Well, Mr amir was wrong in his approach but in reality Pakis and Indians are underpaid in Dubai. For exemple, a white guy from UK degree vs a degreed guy from Indian ( same exp, degree) would get paid higher wages. Can u tell me why is that. Let me tell you that in dubai, they practice what is called race/religion/origin-based renumeration. Isn’t that weird and unfair ? I challenge any 1 here to counter this fact.
A lots of people here seem to be one sided ( especially the recruiters) by cheerleading to each others. However, you cannot put a blind eye of Amir mentionned. It’s a sad reality.
[...] Unbelievable… [...]
Everybody knows the way to run a successful business is to keep your expenses down. If you can get away with paying less, why would you honestly pay more. If people think that they are treated unfairly because of the colour of their skin then why don’t they leave and go home. I’ll tell you why, because they would be treated even worse in their home country by their own people. Hence them looking abroad for more job opportunities. Akon, I do not challenge what you say. I myself have never worked in Dubai, therefore can not agree or disagree with your comment.
I have however been shopping there many times and have to say it is probably one of the best run places in the world. Why change a country to suit foreigners.
Paki I would just stop there if I was you, rather than continuing to try and defend your twisted views on the ‘ills of western society’, because you are going to have a full-time job replying to the number of people who oppose you greatly.
The reference of ‘bomber’ came up because it was a reference to yourself, my dear. Read above, to the Simon says statement. You seem to have such extremsit views, and the hatred of the ‘western society’ you refer to, that Simon referred to you as someone who might potentially think it a good idea to carry a bomb on a plane, regardless, of race, colour or creed, your antagonistic attitude stinks. You make a mockery of this ‘western society’ you supposedly live in, yet would no doubt still expect to exploit the freedom and liberation it provides you. You are a hypocrite in the lowest form. Is this Amir a good friend of yours, Paki? Is this why you are writing 101 replies defending his behaviour? Find yoursel a hobby.. and maybe you will stop ranting.
people have different attitude when they work-with boss and customers… amir cld have been an asset to the company with his real experience, not taking into account that it cld b a fake and the part where he was rude to potential boss… yes, he was wrong in his approach but read through the whole (or not whole?) mail, he didn’t scold mike at all… maybe just trying to be sarcastic though.
it was mike who was furious with his words in the beginning… the boss humiliates the candidate? mike started his offensiveness by scolding all the vulgarities. sad to say, not very professional now that this has been posted online! =(
oh and the ‘if you’re such hot shit, why the reluctance to include a link to any of your work in your CV’ – i think this i also one of the reasons y people need interviews?
now we don’t really know who amir is except for some guy who flunked his opportunity but we know north55 dubai’s management has gotten some issue with their email nettique and hot-temperedness.. cheers!
-from Mike Platts-Creative Partner, North55 Dubai..
*please i am not a racist nor trying to take sides, just my 2cents worth, happy new yr! =)
This is an awesome and hilarious read. Thanks! I really, really, really wonder what’s this prick’s problem!
[...] The reason I’m giving you this link is to show you how powerful blogging is, how important understanding the Connection Economy can be, and how NOT to get ahead in advertising. It’s worth reading the whole thing through. My best is the last line: Congratulations, you’re famous. Read this great story here. [...]
Very. Funny. Altogether. I guess this guy Amir has a bee in his bonnet about summat.
One is left wondering if it has anything to do with the obvious little dishonesties in which wee Mike likes to indulge.
Kudos for Mike for turning the accusation of racism on it’s head. Attack is the best form of defense, so they say.
Doubtless Mike is perennially astonished how people can take offense at the innocuous things he says and does.
Like “All the best, … PS – I’ve taking the liberty of copying some of my colleagues in the industry here”.
And Mike, before you go waffling about English reading or writing, maybe get a spell checker for you email client?
Mike you rock. The moron should have got the message you did not want to hire him and left it at that. But instead he carried on ……..
Well done on exposing the idiot. No sympathy. People who make stupid assumptions like no answer\reply means they work for free should be exposed, I would not hire an idiot like that either. Also to use the work “dude” is not very professional is it ?
Clown.
For all those who haven’t simply looked, laughed & moved on, please muse over the following words:
empathy, patience & respect for others.
Understanding makes all the difference. If you come back & re-read this entire blog a day, or two after having read it for the first time, then you’ll soon notice that there are two types of posts; those who’ve just laughed & then got on with their lives & those who’ve been very keen to affirm their own beliefs, but never too keen to ask others why they believe what they believe. Whatever the discussion it’s surely more beneficial to learn something, to gain a better understanding, than to ‘win’. After all, we’re afraid of what we don’t understand & we all know how helpful fear is!
Mike you rock. That guy was such a wanker and you hadn’t even said anything wrong! I would have told him to f**k off too. Good job Mike!
As entertaining as the exchange is, I don’t think Mike covers himself in glory with his unprofessional abuse and lack of discretion. Telling a job applicant to “fuck off” on email is way out of line belief even though Amir Saffar is clearly out of order. You can see Mike is enjoying the exchange, he could have ignored Amir’s nonsense by not replying to him.
I see his Mike’s mates in the recruitment agency have supported his rudeness, unprofessionalism and lack of discretion. I hope Mike’s firm takes appropriate disciplinary action.
All of this reminds me of a classic saying:
“Don’t argue with an idiot – they will drag you down to their level, and then beat you with experience”.
Amir is way out of line, assuming the full story is there, and deserved a short, sharp response. However, Mike should have known a little better. I think stopping at not. wanted. here. would have been a slightly more prudent decision. He may do well to remember that email is passive communication – you CAN decide on whether to respond or not.
Either way, all of this makes for an entertaining read.
Interesting read. Am at Bahrain and I work in HR and sort of recall seeing some applications from Toronto lately, thanks for the name and details, will be sure to keep this person’s name and contact on record and search the ats, so we can avoid a dance.
Cheers!
I was wondering if I sent a similar message to my boss regarding my salary, do you think I would be fired?? Coz I’m getting sick and tired of this damned place, and was thinking about applying for a job somewhere in Dubai. I’m under thirty, well educated and blonde, I’ve heard these credentials go down well over there??
By the way, I’m convinced that “Paki” is Amir, as the same sadistic undertone of ‘Ooh-I’m-so-hard-done-by’ is in both there correspondance.
Perhaps we need to arrange for more psychotherapists in Dubai, and Canada for that matter??
Ho hum…. as far as racist terms go “Paki”, I live in South Africa, and our racist terms win, so there!
ur friends must be stupid to blog for u and encourage u in ur foolishness. top boss. congratulations to Amir for not replying, dude DONT even get involved! I dont think he actually wanted a job, but wanted some sort of feedback on the £ issue.
And as for Mike. You must think your superior to all. Why do you work in Dubai. Go back to YOUR country!
did u like that? Im sure u didnt.
==============
Readen es truly fundimentul
How soon do you think it will take for this guy to be a “guest star” in some either reality show, sports program, Dr Phil, late night show or any other mainstream TV spot?
MissNewJerseyNobody…
Where exactly were you educated?? My ten year old could construct a paragraph with more respect for grammatics than yours.
Did you like that? I’m sure you didn’t.
btw, I’m starting a new campaign…. Mike for President… of the club for people who were actually educated and have to deal with uneducated amoeba’s on a daily basis!
For those of you who are unclear on what exactly an amoeba is… feel free to google it.
amir, had you got the job i believe you wouldn’t have lasted very long. anybody who is supporting amir based on the series of emails is smply foolish. if you were brave enough to articulate similar views openly in your current jobs, i expect you’d not be there for long.
amir, if at all possible, try to learn from your mistakes.admit and prosper, become a better person. if not this will follow you around for your whole life and continue to hamper and haunt you.
mike, while i relate to where your motivation came from i imagine that if you coudl turn back the clock you may not have started this blog.
i believe what we all got to ask ourselves is what good can come from this blog. i would suggest that if we pratice a little more tollerance of eachothers differences… and maybe we can as a planet prevent small incidents becomeing snowballing into international incidents.
we are in control, its time to learn and change.
Bronwyn Harris and eve. 2 peas in a pod.
I wish u wud stop blogging outta ur white honky a***.
Hows that for rudeness?
Congratualte me for being nearly as rude as “top boss” Mike. Go on then.
wahahahaha
I had a similar experience about 8 years back, when I interviewed a finance professional for a senior position in my group. The candidate (who incidently was 10 years older than me) got in to an argument with me on a technical question involving valuation of businesses. I did not select him not because his answer was wrong but because of his improperly worded arguments to prove himself right. He did not stop with the interview. He started sending emails . After a couple of exchanges I gave up.
Some people are like that.
Wow, Mike… I’m not sure if you’re still reading the postings from this or not, but if you are, I would love to work for a guy like you. I can work for about 2000 CDN a month and I’m currently a System Admin in NS, Canada. Send me an email if you need a guy to get your coffee.
oh man please dont let this guy give you a bad opinion on canadians, were usually not like that…and what kind of loser doesnt send an email again if he doesnt get an answer?
and by the way, Canadians do not fuck moose (except on very special occasions)
I would really like to hire this guy Amir. I’m afraid Matt’s missed the boat on this one. Being a fellow Canadian – I totally understand where Amir is coming from. And I realize he is speaking from the heart of his bottom.
Now, the reason I’m writing to him asap is working here in Dubai (oh yes, I do get paid), I often feel that my mailbox, intray and blackbeery gets inundated with a load of shit. I am not sure if every one would agree, but I’m guessing he would be perfect as Chief Rectal Passage.
All I can say is I work for one of the biggest branding agencies in the world,
I’m english and based at our office, He would have no chance after what I read
Hey Chris! This Amir caracter is a complete, how can I put it, alien. I’m from Croatia and when, in croatian ofcourse, somebody calls you or tells you that you’re an alien over here, it’s pretty bad. As I was reading this, lets call it, conversation between your buddy Mike and this alien, I got serious stomackake from this comedy/tragedy. The only reason why anybody should hire this universal reject,is if they want something to laugh at to break the boredom in the office. I say something ’cause this Amir DUDE, is definatly not somebody, the guy is a thing and should be treated as shuch. I’m sorry for any errors in my spelling.
All the best to you and your friend Mike.
Marko
P.S. I wouldn’t hire him to be an office coathanger.
Hello!!!
Marko here again. I forgot to mention Anita. Honey, where did you get your lobotomy done? They’ve done a great job, it’s suits you well!!! And when is your next treatment, stupid?! But what realy troubles me is, who is the person who gave him the Canadien passport in the first place. ‘Cause I know a lot of C’nooks I most of them were OK people.
Received this particular mail from a colleague this morning and was wondering about its authenticity.
Ass-umption is:
1. Amir Saffar knows you. You know him too, though you don’t know that you know him too o_O
2. AS is getting back at you
3. AS is running a rival Design agency and just lost a client to you
4. AS is venting his frustration at finding the Dubai job conditions unsatisfactory
Though all ‘credit’ goes to Mike, can’t resist from saying…..’You’ve been Punked Dude!!!!’
=)
You are not doing yourself any favours by taking the low ground and being reactionary. You end up making yourself look like the very thing you decry. better luck next time.
holy shit thats alot of comments…
dude, that was awesome, great work with that asshole
Amir, This guy needs to do psychology 101 though I fear he’d fail!
Unfortunately he has appalling people skills and some kind of social/mental instability.
Truth of the matter is in IT people skills are very important. The pizza box programmer in the dungeon who had a pizza shoved under the door every few days and eventually crawled out with a wonderful program – that’s a concept of the past, its all team work and interaction.
Quite unbelievable, can you imagine how this guy would flip out in the work place?
closed. thank. fuck.
wow, that was an excellent read
I wonder if Amir ever got a job in Dubai
interesting ……..
but just wonder if the asian worker and european/western worker are paid the same???? $2000-$3000 (for same skills ~ except english)
and $2000 per month is not much i think for web designer skills……..
i’ve heard that asian are paid less than european/westerner worker at the same skills
last month company at dubai ask me to work there as interior designer for $1200 per month…. (i’m an asian)
so sad……
but i wonder if i am a european/westerner… are they going to offer me the same amount (with my CAD, photoshop, 3DMAX skills??????)
mmmmmmm think not………
so sad….. that these things are really happen……….
Amazing…Just unbelievable
I agree with MARTace. Like it or not the color does matter. There are few whom make a good break and this is the truth. However I must say this is good entertainment, and as for Amir, the comments coming from a 6 year experienced professional is disappointing. Goes to show how immature this person is. As for mike I do admire you for the empathy and patience. Way to go.
what a big asshole!!!
I’m probably much to late to comment on this but someone back there commented on how terrible the behavior of minority groups is and someone else described it as narrow mindedness. No it isn’t. A few months ago some idiot put up a racist display in front of a school and got his ass kicked for the trouble. He deserved it but the student that attacked him were sent to trial. There were marches speeches and a buncha protests over the fact that one of the kids that could have been tried as a juvenile wasn’t. He wasn’t because of a criminal record. Of the 3 that could have been tried as a juvenile he was the only one with a record and it was a little more than a parkiing ticket yet they protested and had the decision reversed.
[...] – you’re famous: http://www.chrisdiclerico.com/2006/12/17/how-not-to-get-a-job/ [...]
[...] – you’re famous: http://www.chrisdiclerico.com/2006/12/17/how-not-to-get-a-job/ [...]
OMG! I can’t believe there are actually people this STUPID and arrogant in existence. Did this clown even think for a second that anyone would put up with his rant and even then bend over on four knees and offer him a job.
I guess there’s no such thing as the worlds biggest idiot since theres always bound to be someone even bigger.
The man is an idiot and no breeding at all,shocking to hire a man without manners.