Important Vocabulary

• Collective bargaining: Negotiations between unions and employees about their member’s wages and working conditions
• A strike: A stoppage of work, as a protest against working conditions, low pay, and so on
• A go-slow or slowdown: A deliberate reduction in the rate of production, as a protest
• Working-to-rule: Deliberately obeying every regulation in an organization, which severely disrupts normal operations
• Industrial action: A general term for strikes, go-slows, work-to-rules, and so on
• To picket: To protest outside a factory or other workplace, and try to persuade workers and delivery drivers not to enter
• Manual workers: People who work with their hands
• Trade union: A union for workers with a particular type of job
• Consult: To ask someone’s opinion before making a decision
• Adversary: An opponent or enemy
• Uneconomic: Too expensive, wasteful, loss-making
• Tyranny: Unlimited and unfairly used power
• Deregulation: Ending or relaxing restrictive laws
• The public sector: Areas of the economy run by the local or national government
• Confrontational: Hostile, almost aggressive, seeking conflicts
• Conglomerate: A large corporation, made up of a group of companies

Completing the Sentences With Given Words

[ dynamic | employees | employers | partner | peace | represented | role | sensible | team-working | voice ]

• Unions are a necessary voice for the interests of workers.
• In countries like South Korea, or Poland, or South Africa, trade unions have played an enormous dynamic political and economic role.
• As long as employees have needs that need to be represented they’ll need trade unions.
• Team-working employers, that want effective social peace and want also a sensible and dynamic economy, should be encouraging trade unions.
• In some of the most successful economies, a strong trade union presence is recognized by employers and accepted as a partner by the government.

Extracted From

MacKenzie, I. (2002). English for Business Studies: A course for Business Studies and Economics students (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.