I. Jobs and professions

1.1. What is the difference between the following pairs of words?

– a career and a profession;

– a vocation and a job;

– a certificate and a qualification;

– skills and experience.

1.2. Complete the table with the appropriate verbs.

Noun	Verb	Noun	Verb
application dismissal increase interview offer promotion	apply for	resignation rejection reprimand rise retirement shortlist

1.3. Put the words from Exercise 1.2 and from the box below in the appropriate places in the stories about Angela, Ben and Sheila.

part-time job job centre temporary job contract pension redundancy job description Curriculum Vitae (CV) unemployment benefit (dole)

ANGELA

1. Angela prepared a summary of her qualifications and experience.

2. She saw an ad in the newspaper and wrote a letter to the Personnel Department.

3. She received a letter saying that she and a few others had been selected to meet managers on a certain day.

4. With the letter there was a list of things that the job involved.

5. Angela attended a formal meeting at which some managers asked questions about her experience, qualifications, etc.

6. She received a letter telling her that she had got the job.

7. There was also a formal document, telling her about working hours, holidays, salary, etc. She had to sign this.

BEN

1. Ben applied for a job. He got a letter back saying that he hadn’t got the job.

2. After trying several times, he went to an office where they help people to find jobs.

3. They took all his details. Later they phoned him and offered him a job just for a few weeks.

4. After this job, he got another, but it only involved working for part of the day.

5. Ben got to the age of 65, the age when employees stop working.

6. Now he gets money monthly during his old age from the government and from his employers.

SHEILA

1. Sheila got on very well in her first job, and after a while she got a higher salary.

2. She did so well that after a year, she was given a new job with more responsibility.

3. After a while, the quality of her work was not good enough, and she was often late. She had to see the boss, who told her she was not satisfied.

4. Sheila’s work continued to be unsatisfactory. After another warning she was told that she had to leave.

5. Sheila got another job, but she didn’t like the work and decided that she wanted to leave.

6. Sheila got a third job, but after a few weeks the company went bankrupt and her job came to an end.

7. After several weeks without a job, she registered at a government office. They paid her a small amount of money every week.

1.4. Explain the meaning of underlined words and word combinations. Use the expressions from the table:

Applying for a job	to find a job, to apply for a job, to fill in an application form, to submit an application, to go for / to have an interview, to have good qualifications and experience, curriculum vitae (CV)
Having a job	to have a job/a career in (teaching), to be in work, to be on the staff, to work freelance, to be self-employed, to do sth for a living
Giving a job	to employ, to engage, to appoint, to recruit (sb for sth), to hire (Am), to short-list
Not having a job / leaving a job	to be without a job, to be out of work, to be unemployed (jobless – Am), to be between jobs, to be on the dole (Br), to be on the welfare (Am), to quit, to resign, to retire / take early retirement, to hand in one’s notice / resignation, to be on / take sick / maternity leave
Making sb leave a job	to fire, to sack / to give sb the sack, to dismiss, to give sb the boot (infml), to make sb redundant, to give sb their notice, to expel, to lay off, to discharge, to relieve sb of their duties / post
Promotion	to promote, to upgrade, to transfer, to move up the ladder
Demotion	to demote, to reduce, to downgrade, to strip
Hours of work	a 9 to 5 job / to work 9 to 5, to work overtime; to work flexi-time / be on flexi-time / to work in shifts; a full-time / part-time / holiday job; a permanent / temporary job
Payment	salary; wages; fee; commission; golden handshake; fringe benefits

1. What do you do for a living?

2. It’s difficult to make a living as a freelance writer.

3. The fringe benefits of this job include a car and free health insurance.

4. I lead a pretty mundane life; nothing interesting ever happens to me.

5. She’s been downgraded from principal to deputy.

6. The general was stripped of his rank.

7. Have you been short-listed for the post?

8. He was appointed to the vacant post.

9. If I don’t get a pay rise I’ll quit.

10. In April the number of school leavers on the dole normally rises.

11. They were laid off because of the lack of new orders.