题目内容
As the economy begins to recover, salary increases should do the same.
In the past few years, employers have raised workers’ salaries by about 4 percent per year--except for 2009, when the figure dropped to a historically low 2.1 percent, according to a survey of World at Word. About one-third of companies froze raises altogether.
For 2010, World at Work’s survey projects an average salary increase budget of 2.7 percent, a figure that shows the situation has improved but the job market is still weak. Between 10 percent and 15 percent of companies said they would freeze raises--far fewer than in 2009, but still more than in most years.
How can you get a raise? Avalos and others offer the following tips:
* Do your job well. This means producing high-quality work, of course, but also keeping the big picture in mind.
“It really comes down to positioning yourself as a high performer, somebody who is aware of business goals and helps the company meet their goals as an organization”, Avalos said
* Be visible. When times are tough, some workers think. “I’m going to hunker down and hope that nobody notices me, because I don’t want to be on a layoff list,” said Richard Phillips, owner of Advantage Career Solutions. This is a mistake, because you’re unlikely to get a raise if no one knows what you have accomplished. “If anything, what you want to do is be more visible.”
* Make your boss’s life easier. This means everything from having a good attitude to taking on extra tasks. If you don’t know how you can help your boss, ask.
* Ask for a raise. Talk to your boss and present your case: Here’s what I’ve done, here’s how it fits with the company’s goals, and here is why I think it’s worth a salary increase. In some cases, even if your company has an official raise freeze, you can get a raise if you make good case.
If the answer is no -- or if you’re not ready to ask directly -- Phillips suggests asking, “What would you like to see from me that would put me in line for a raise?”
A question like this can improve your standing. “Just asking the question says to the boss, ‘I’m thinking about where I fit in here, what I can do,” Phillips said, “That in and of itself has value.”
1.The passage is mostly from a\an________.
A. novel B. science fiction
C. magazine D. biography
2.Employers have raised workers’ salaries by about _______percent in 2007.
A. 4 B. 2.1 C. 2.7 D. 10
3.If you want to get a raise, the most important thing you should keep in your mind is to ______.
A. have your job done well B. be visible everywhere as possible as you can
C. ask your boss for a raise directly D. change your job
4.All the statements are true except________.
A. the situation has improved but the job market is still weak
B. salary increases should recover as the economy does
C. producing high-quality work will surely help you get a raise
D. that in and off an employee makes no difference
1.C
2.A
3.A
4.D
【解析】略
Humankind has tried to improve its standard of living since the very beginning of civilization. Back then, as well as today, providing food and security was the basic task for a person. However, nowadays the range of required goods has expanded significantly. People feel the need for not only some primary things, such as a piece of bread and a roof over their heads, but also for various facilities and luxuries. Providing humanity with these things is connected to the use of natural resources, which requires energy. In turn, the common sources of energy we use today cause pollution, so economic growth is almost unavoidably associated with environmental damage.
Economic growth is the increase in numbers of goods and services produced over time by an economy, and it is calculated in terms of real Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Before growth is calculated, inflation (通货膨胀)is adjusted in order to take into account its misleading effect on the price of goods and services. Economic growth can also be explained as the increase in expected output, which results from an increase in actual output, or total demand.
There are certain aspects of economic growth which affect the environment. The first of these is the fact that in order to produce more goods and products, at a faster rate, the construction of large industrial plants is required. These plants produce a lot of waste, leading to the pollution of water and the atmosphere, which may cause negative long term health effects to nearby populations of animals, or people. They also lead to global warming.
Industrial manufacturing leads to the constantly increasing energy consumption. The traditional energy sources, which are commonly used nowadays, are considered to be the greatest polluters to the environment. There also exist so-called eco-friendly sources of energy. They are sometimes preferred but replacing the traditional sources with them also requires time, during which people have to make some sacrifices to support these undertakings.
In order to produce economically practical energy, a sometimes significant transformation of the natural site is often inevitable. This is expensive and, has harmful effects on the environment. Application of wind energy would block airflows’ natural speed which is the reason for their decrease in strength, after crossing the windmill. Consequently, the pressure balance that is brought about by this current will be affected, and it is important to remember that the environment and weather conditions are directly affected by atmospheric pressure.
For these reasons, bringing about economic growth without any resulting environmental damage, whatsoever, is impossible.
【小题1】What does the passage mainly talk about?
| A． Pollution caused by plant construction. |
| B． Effects of windmills on the environment. |
| C． Economic growth and human civilization. |
| D． Economic growth and environmental damage. |
| A．Goods and products | B．The industrial plants |
| C． Water and atmosphere | D．Negative health effects |
| A． economic growth should be calculated in terms of GDP |
| B． use of natural resources causes no damage to the environment |
| C． industrial manufacturing may cause damage to the environment |
| D． a windmill is a perfect way to produce economically practical energy |
