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Definition and Types of Employment

EMPLOYMENT

We hire a man, not his history.

Henry Ford (1863-1947), American car manufacturer

GETTING STARTED

1. Discuss the following questions first in small groups, then with the whole class:

a) If you were asked to define the term “employment”, what would you say?

b) Do you find employment to be a social issue or a political one? Why?

c) How does the level of population employment influence the economic situation in the country?

2. In your opinion, which factors from the list given below are important for getting a job? Choose the seven most important. Is there anything missing from the list?

age, appearance, astrological sign, contacts and connections, experience, family background, handwriting, hobbies, intelligence, marital status, personality, qualifications, references, sex, sickness record, blood group

 

3. Sooner or later you will be invited for a job interview. In pairs note down two things you think candidates should do at a job interview, and two things they shouldn’t do.

 

USEFUL VOCABULARY

employ v

employer n

employee, co-worker n

employment n

unemployment n

unemployed a

manual labor

white-collar, blue-collar, pink-collar jobs

full, seasonal, formal, informal employment

telecommuting = teleworking n

part-time work

self employment

freelancer n

flexible working hours, flexitime

clock in/ out v (clock on/ off)

work in shifts

be on the day/ night shift

run one’s own business

workforce, payroll n

staff, personnel n

be overstaffed

skilled, unskilled workers

redundancy n

make smb redundant, sack, lay off, dismiss, fire v

leave, quit one’s job, resign, retire v

wages, salary, fee, bonus, commission, tip, premium, retainer, fringe benefits, perks n

trade unions

recruitment process

absentee record

hire = recruit v

recruitment / employment agency

headhunter n

failure n

interviewer, interviewee n

applicant, candidate, nominee n

shortlist n

job opening, position, post, vacancy

“golden hello”, “golden handshake”

apply for a job

applicant n

meet requirements

CV (curriculum vitae)

application letter

reference n

racial / sex discrimination, sexism, sexual harassment, ageism

leave for work

go to work

get to / arrive at work

be at / off work

be in / out of work

satisfying, stimulating, fascinating, exciting, dull, boring, uninteresting, repetitive, routine, tiring, tough, hard, demanding work (job)

READING

Reading 1

  1. Read the text and focus on the following points:

- the definition of employment, labor and workforce;

- the main goal of reformers;

- pros and cons of telecommuting.

Definition and Types of Employment

When we speak about employment we usually mean paid work done by a person or a group of people. Labor, in its turn, refers to the routine work that people do in their jobs, whether it is performing manual labor, managing employees, or providing skilled professional services. Manual labor usually refers to physical work that requires little formal education or training, such as shoveling dirt or moving furniture. Managers include those who supervise other workers. Examples of skilled professionals include doctors, lawyers, and dentists. Very often managers and skilled professionals are called white collar workers, as their job does not involve manual labor.



The main goal of economic and social reformers is full employment, that is, availability of living-wage jobs for all employable citizens. But still many people work part-time, that is performing their professional duties only a part of the regular working time. With the growing number of people out of work job sharing becomes more and more popular. This is the practice of dividing a full time job between two people so that each works for half the time. There is also informal employment, or paid work on a casual basis. Jobs are irregular, and workers are often self-employed without earning pensions and without paying taxes. This sort of employment is common in urban areas of developing countries. It may involve service jobs as well as craft industries. Informal employment also includes illegal activities such as theft, prostitution, and selling drugs.

With technological advances, more and more people resort to telecommuting. They work away from the employer’s office, often at home, but maintain close contact with coworkers and managers through electronic mail and telephone. In some situations telecommuting can increase an employee’s productivity; it also decreases time spent driving to and from the office and decreases pollution from automobiles. But some managers feel uncomfortable with the lack of direct supervision they have over their telecommuting employees, and some employees may dislike telecommuting because of isolation from coworkers.

The total number of people a company employs is the payroll or the workforce. If there are too many employees the company is overstaffed and it has to let its employees go. In this case we are talking about downsizing, or rightsizing. When the employees have no choice the redundancies are compulsory. But when the employees can choose to leave the redundancies are voluntary. The payroll can also be reduced by natural wastage, with employees leaving over a period of time for usual reasons.

2. Scan the text again and make a list of different types of employment mentioned in the text. Can you add any other forms of employment which are popular in Belarus?

  1. Decide whether the following statements are true or false:

1) Manual labor refers to physical work that requires little formal education or training.

2) Very often managers are called white-collar workers, as their job doesn’t involve manual labor.

3) Full employment is absence of jobs for all employable citizens.

4) Informal employment is unpaid work on a casual basis.

5) Self-employment is common in rural areas of developed countries.

 

Reading 2 It’s Useful to Know…

Types of job

A full-time job is for the whole of the normal working week; a part-time job is for less time than that.

A permanent job doesn’t finish after a fixed period; a temporary job finishes after a fixed period.

 


Date: 2016-01-14; view: 788


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