Part III Listening and Thinking
A: Passage
Script:
A London betting firm offers employees the chance to decide their own salary as well as being able to check what their colleagues are paid.
Smarkets encourages their staff to have pay rise requests. These requests should be approved by peers who offer suggestions on a suitable rise percentage. However, if the person isn't happy with the suggestions given they can also come up with their own request, which is typically between 10 and 30 percent. The pay transparency policy also allows staff to check their colleagues' salaries in order to minimize the gender pay gap.
Angeline Mulet-Marquis, a software engineer at Smarkets, said: “Most people get what they ask for.” Ms Mulet-Marquis requested a 12 percent rise in her last assessment which was granted to her.A study found cost was the most common barrier to promoting similar pay information rules in Britain.Despite the challenges for big companies, Ms Mulet-Marquis suggested other firms try a transparency drive.
your teams don't communicate well, that process is probably not going to work anyway, you have to build it on something healthy.”
伦敦的一家博彩公司为员工提供了一个决定自己薪水的机会，同时也能查看同事的薪水。Smarkets公司鼓励员工向公司提出加薪请求，这一请求需要得到同事们的支持，同事们还会对合适的加薪幅度提出建议。但如果员工对同事提出的加薪建议不满，他们也可以提出自己的要求。加薪幅度一般在10%到30%之间。这种激进的薪酬透明政策还允许员工查看同事的薪酬，以尽量缩小男女薪酬差距。
Smarkets公司的软件工程师安吉丽娜穆莱特-马奎斯说:“大多数人都能得到想要的薪水。”在公司对她的上次评估中，她要求获得12%的加薪，并如愿得到。
一项研究发现，成本是在英国推广类似的薪金信息规则的最常见障碍。虽然透明薪酬政策在大公司面临挑战，马奎斯仍鼓励其他公司大胆尝试。
她说：“我的建议是，除了薪酬调整外，大家也必须进行健康的沟通。”“如果你的团队沟通不良，那这个系统就可能无法起作用。这个系统必须建立在已经很健康的公司机制基础上。”
Keys:
I. Listen to the passage and write down the missing words.
1. offers 2. Paid 3. rise 4. suggestions 5. come
6. gap 7. last 8. common 9. drive 10. beyond
II. Listen again and answer the following questions.
1. A London company offers employees the chance to decide their own salary, and they are also able to check what their colleagues are paid.
2. Cost was the most common obstacle to promoting pay information rules in Britain.
B: News Broadcast
Script:
Microsoft has told staff that they will have the option of working from home permanently with manager approval. The move mimics the US tech giant's rivals Facebook and Twitter, which have also said remote work would be a permanent option. It follows a rapid shift away from office working prompted by the coronavirus pandemic.
Many companies are reconsidering how much office space they need, expecting a long-term increase in remote staff. Microsoft said some roles will continue to require an in-person presence, such as those needing access to hardware, the firm added. But many staff will also be able to work from home part-time, without needing formal approval from their managers.
As of April, more than 46% of those employed were doing some work from home, according to the UK Office of National Statistics. That was comparable to the US, where 42% of the workforce was remote in May, according to Stanford University economics professor Nicholas Bloom.
Prof Bloom said many are eyeing policies that combine two days a week at home with three days of office time, which will remain important for meetings, building company culture and loyalty and basic mental health. But he said he did not expect the pre-pandemic office to return. "The pandemic has permanently shifted the way we work."
Analysts say such a shift could have widespread implications, reducing demand for office and residential properties in expensive city centers. Prof Bloom said the changes in the workplace may help ease affordability issues, but won't spell the end of city centers.
微软公司告知员工，如果得到管理人员的批准，他们可以选择永久性在家办公。此举效仿了这家美国科技巨头的竞争对手脸书和推特，脸书和推特已表示员工可以选择永久远程办公。在此之前，由于新冠疫情暴发，人们的工作地点从办公室迅速转移到家中。
许多公司预计远程办公人员的数量将会长期增长，因此正重新考虑所需的办公空间。微软公司还表示，一些职位仍将需要来办公室上班，比如硬件相关职位。但许多员工也可以在家兼职，而这不需要得到管理人员的正式批准。
根据英国国家统计局的数据，截至今年4月，超过46%的员工在家办公。斯坦福大学经济学教授尼古拉斯·布鲁姆表示，这一比例与美国相当，今年5月，美国42%的员工在家办公。
布鲁姆教授表示，许多企业正着眼于每周两天在家办公、三天在办公室上班等政策，这对于举行会议、建立企业文化和忠诚度，以及基本的心理健康仍然十分重要。不过，他说，他认为我们回不到疫情前的办公状态。新冠疫情永久性地改变了我们的工作方式。”
分析师表示，这种转变可能产生广泛影响，降低对城市中心昂贵的写字楼和住宅的需求。布鲁姆教授表示，工作场所的变化可能有助于缓解经济负担，但并不意味着城市中心的终结。
Keys:
I. Listen and decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F).
1. F 2. T 3. T 4. F 5. T
2. Listen again and answer the following questions.
Reference:
Yes, I have had the experiences working from home. At the beginning, I think it’s fantastic. But as months have passed, some of the drawbacks have emerged. The lack of division between private life and work life meant "it sometimes feels like you are sleeping at work". Full-time at home are not ideal for most students.
Enjoying Movie Clips
The Devil Wears Prada
(穿普拉达的女王)
Andy moves to New York City to be a journalist, and her break might very well be working for Runway, the ultimate fashion magazine in the world. She is hunting for the job as a second assistant to Miranda Priestly, the ultra-demanding editor-in-chief
Practice and Assessment
Unit Project
Work in groups to role-play the following situation to test your integrated skills got in the unit.Suppose you are Coco and you have received a job offer. When you come to the interview room,Mr. Parsons, the interviewer, is waiting for you. He wants to know something about you.
Checking points:
1. Complete content
2. Clear pronunciation
3. Correct expressions
4. Abundant communication
5. Powerful cooperation
6. Proper etiquette