Question

Time to stop excuses for lateness

There are always a couple of people in every office who are habitually late for work. How should a manager handle the problem in a multicultural environment? Should he be patient because different cultures have their own concepts of time? Or should he take disciplinary action?

Scholars tell us that Westerners and Asians approach time differently. Culturally, Westerners live more in the present and the near future. Asians live more in the ancient past or in the distant future.

Asians try to avoid a neurotic(神经过敏的) slavery to time, viewing life as a passing moment in eternity(来世). They enjoy the sense of “zero gravity” that comes from traveling without an immediate goal or an urgent objective.

  To many Asians, life is a long journey and happiness is simply not a matter of time. Instead of rushing, they prefer to maintain a steady pace. Quietly watching the seasons change or children grow is certainly not considered a waste of time.

  Westerners believe that happiness is just over the next hill. A little more time, money or struggle will get them there. Americans, in particular, live by time-pressing schedules and deadlines.

  But how does this insight relate to the need for punctuality(守时) in the office? Should we infer from this difference in cultural outlook that it’s justified for some employees to be late in today’s office life? Does it mean that a manager should disregard punctuality as an office discipline?

On the surface, it might seem that a manager may have to be more tolerant about punctuality with some cultural groups than others. But this is unwarranted in an urban civilization. It would have belief in the academic literature that implies the time orientation(定向) in such a culture is inferior to that in the west.

  This confuses two entirely different things: observance of punctuality and the philosophical opinions of time.

A person’s belief that time is measured in centuries rather than in seconds has nothing to do with his ability to show up on time at the office every day. No Asian employee would ever use a cultural excuse for being late. He may certainly employ more modern excuses such as a traffic jam, a slow watch, or a parking problem. These excuses are the same as those used by the office worker in the West. Why is it considered acceptable to be consistently late for these reasons in Asia, while in the West such a person would be considered undependable and untrustworthy?

The problem is, perhaps, is that in our social life in Asia we tend to be more tolerant of friends and relatives who makes us wait for an hour at the downtown area. We don’t think they are taking our friendship and affection for granted. We don’t consider them guilty of disrespect. What is worse, we let them exonerate(免受责备) themselves with doubtful excuses.

But how we react to latecomers in our social lives is a matter of individual choice. In the world of modern business we can’t afford that flexibility.

No body minds if a person is late to work once in a blue moon. Punctuality should not be allowed to become a fashion. But in the office environment, there has to be a climate of discipline in which a people respect the keeping of time.

Even in those companies which maintain flexible time, there are set hours when employees must be present in the office. Some companies may choose to stagger the opening and closing of their offices to enable employees to avoid the rush hour. But that doesn’t mean there is no longer a need for punctuality.

Being late is, generally, a problem relating to a small number of employees. A manager should try to break their bad habits through suggestions, repeatedly if required. It’s not an easy task and in some cases, it requires a fair amount of patience.

72. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. Cultural conceptions can not become excuses for being late.

B. It is high time that Asians get rid of the bad habit of being late.

C. Managers should do more to stop employees from being late.

D. Suggestions have been given to help Asians avoid being late.

73. Which of the following is true according to the author?

A. Asians lay more emphasis on punctuality than Americans do.

B. Americans lay more emphasis on punctuality than Asians do.

C. The author thinks highly of Asians’ patience and tolerance.

D. Americans are more patient and more tolerant than Asians.

74. What does the word “stagger ”in the last paragraph but one mean in this passage ?

A. cause to hesitate or doubt                          B. arrange for different reasons and purposes  

C. walk in an unsteady way                  D. arrange not to come at the same time

75. What is the author’s attitude towards the habitual lateness for work?

A. Neutral                 B. Positive         C. Negative                D. indifferent

Answer 1

 BBDC