1 Greece seeks end to ‘gross indignity’ (BBC) Greece's
new finance minister has urged Germany to help end the "gross
indignity" of the Greek debt crisis. Yanis Varoufakis said "too much
time, hopes, lives" had been wasted by Greece's forced austerity
programme. He was speaking after talks with his German counterpart, Wolfgang
Schaeuble, who said a reduction of Greece's debt was off the agenda.
On Thursday evening, thousands of people gathered in
front of the Greek parliament to back the radical leftist Syriza party, which
won last month's general election with a pledge to write off half the country's
debt. The demonstrators were also protesting against what they described as
"blackmail" by the EU. On Thursday, the Greek stock market fell
sharply after the European Central Bank (ECB) said it would refuse to accept
Greek bonds in return for lending.
The ECB's move, a response to Greece's efforts to
rewrite the aid-for-reform terms of its €240bn bailout, will force the Greek
central bank to provide tens of billions of euros more emergency liquidity to
the country's banks.
After the meeting with Mr Varoufakis, Mr Schaeuble
was quick to rule out a so-called "haircut" of Greece's debt, which
stands at more than €320bn (£240bn; $366bn). He said that Greece "belonged
in the euro" and that Germany had offered to help the country meet its
debt conditions by strengthening its tax system.
2 Ireland remains fastest-growing EU economy
(Phillip Inman in The Guardian) Ireland’s tiger economy roared back to life
last year and will retain its crown in 2015 as the fastest growing in the EU,
according to Brussels’ latest forecasts. An export boom has put Dublin at the
top of the growth league while the bulk of the EU continues to pay the price of
internal wrangling over Greece and the after-effects of strict austerity
measures.
The pace of GDP growth in Ireland will dip to 3.5%
in 2015 after reaching 4.8% in 2014, but remains ahead of Britain’s 2.4% and
Germany’s 1.5%, the European commission said in its winter 2015 forecast.
Ireland’s debt-to-GDP ratio remains one of the
highest in the EU at 115%, unemployment is in double digits and prime minister
Enda Kenny has described the recovery as fragile. The review of Ireland’s
economy also warned it was subject to volatility – demonstrated by the strong
growth in the first nine months of 2014 and a flat performance in the last
three months. But the commission said the strong rate of expansion will
continue into 2016.
3 What not to wear for an interview (Belo Cipriani
in San Francisco Chronicle) In the relaxed San Francisco Bay Area work scene,
it is possible to wear a more casual outfit to an interview. On the other hand,
dressing too casually for a meeting with a potential employer could send the
message that you are not serious about the job. Here are five things not to
wear to a Bay Area interview.
Cologne or perfume: There are a lot of people with
allergies to certain kinds of fragrances and you don’t want to make the hiring
manager cough or, worse, have to distance themselves from you during the
interview. Tight-fitting clothing: Wearing a shirt that’s too tight or a skirt
that’s too short isn’t just distracting to the hiring manager, but also very
uncomfortable for the person wearing the ill-fitting clothing. For this reason,
try your clothes on the day before and give yourself time to buy a new outfit
if you need to.
Bright clothes: While you may want to stand out from
the pack, standing out for wearing bright clothing is not the way to go. The
more the hiring manager is distracted by your colorful shirt or dress, the less
they are likely to pay attention to what you have to say.
Nothing you would wear to a club: Men want to avoid
chaotic patterns in their shirts and ties and women should avoid showing
cleavage and heels taller than two inches. So, if you have worn the shirt or
dress in question on a night out with friends, it’s probably not the best thing
to wear to an interview.
Loud jewelry: Earrings or bracelets that jingle and
rattle when you move could be very distracting to an interviewer, keeping him
or her from focusing on what you have to say. When considering jewelry for an
interview, less is more.
While you may not need a suit to interview in the
Bay Area, drifting too far from business casual can hurt your chances at
landing the job. And in the end, being prepared for a meeting with a potential
employer isn’t just about outlining your experience, but also about showing
them you can properly represent the company.
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