As if being made redundant is not indignity enough, many ex-employees then risk further humiliation by taking a psychometric test.

Eager to peer deep into the mysteries of their personalities, newly unemployed bankers are queuing up at outplacement firms in large numbers to answer questions of the "If you saw someone kicking a chicken, would you try to stop them?" variety, in the belief that it might help them decide what sort of job they should do next.