對很多在校生來說，夏天是用來放松和休息的時間。但也有人選擇在暑期找一份工作，這樣不僅能掙點零花錢，從長遠的角度來講，還可以學習、積攢職業上的技能。本集《隨身英語》討論暑期工作的好處。

Vocabulary: jobs 詞匯: 工作 

Have you ever had a summer job? For many young people, summer is a heady period where education stops and fun begins. That said, holidays, festivals and time spent with friends cost money. And the very group who have the time to capitalise on the fun summer has to offer may not have the funds to do so. The solution? A summer job.

The concept of cash-strapped students and younger members of society being gainfully employed over the summer period is not a new one. And there are opportunities out there for those who want to earn. For me it was tending bar at a bowling alley. Vacancies can range from roles as mundane as fry cook, to seasonal work at a theme park, or a cushy job with comfortable conditions. In many cases, the jobs only pay minimum wage, which may only tide you over. But the money is not the only thing that's gained.

"Summer and Saturday jobs prepare young people for successful careers in later life, teaching vital 'soft skills'," says UK Work and Pensions secretary Ester McVey in the Daily Mail. Indeed, when talking about their experiences of summer jobs, people asked for a BBC News article said they got "invaluable training" and learnt skills such as punctuality, tolerance, and the importance of hard graft. These opportunities are thought to be so important that the UK government has placed 20,000 summer job vacancies on a dedicated portal on its Find a Job website. 

This move comes at a time of apparent need. The percentage of young people working while studying has more than halved since 1997, falling from 42% to 18% in 2014. Those are the findings of a UK government report on the death of the Saturday job. Ester McVey believes this is because young people are choosing to focus more on education rather than earning extra money. But that isn't the only problem. It isn't always easy to get a job, as 20-year-old Liberty O'Hagan, a student from Worthing, found. She told the BBC employers see summer workers as a waste of training resources since they inevitably return to university. Not to mention, by working all summer, you may feel you have missed out on the experiences and opportunities your friends have had – travelling and having fun.

While a summer job may not be a dream job, it can teach you things for "a successful future," says Ester McVey in a piece for the Telegraph. What students may consider a means to an end, can, in fact, become a worthwhile career-making endeavour.

詞匯表

capitalise on 從…獲利
funds 資金
cash-strapped 缺錢的
gainfully employed 被高薪聘用
tend bar 做酒吧招待
vacancy 職位空缺
mundane 單調的，千篇一律的
seasonal work 季節性工作
cushy 輕松的、安逸的
minimum wage 法定最低工資
tide you over 幫助你渡過難關
soft skills 軟技能，指溝通、社交技能
punctuality 守時
tolerance 寬容、容忍
hard graft 苦工、繁重的工作
training 訓練
worthwhile 有價值的
endeavour 努力

測驗與練習

1. 閱讀課文并回答問題。

1. True or false? The concept of summer jobs is a new one.

2. According to Ester McVey, what are the benefits of summer and Saturday jobs?

3. What has the UK government done to promote summer jobs?

4. What has happened to the number of young people working while studying?

5. Which expression in the text means 'something you do only because it helps you achieve something else'?

2. 請在不參考課文的情況下完成下列練習。選擇一個意思合適的單詞填入句子的空格處。

1. I like being a builder, but it's not exactly a ______ job. You're often exhausted!

mundane       cushy       gainful       worthwhile

2. Young people these days don't work like we used to. In my day work was nothing but ______.

tending bar       seasonal work       soft skills       hard graft

3. The most important thing is: never be late. ______ is very important at work.

punctuality       training       funds       tolerance

4. I have a second job at the weekends ______. I often make cocktails!

working bar       employing bar       serving bar       tending bar

5. I've been a ______ for years. I work summers in parks and winters on the slopes.

temporary worker       seasonal worker       part-time worker       unreal worker   

答案

1. 閱讀課文并回答問題。

1. True or False: The concept of summer jobs is a new one.
False. The concept of cash-strapped students and younger members of society being gainfully employed over the summer period, is not a new one.

2. According to Ester McVey, what are the benefits of summer and Saturday jobs?
'Summer and Saturday jobs prepare young people for successful careers in later life, teaching vital 'soft skills'."

3. What has the UK government done to promote summer jobs?
The UK government has placed 20,000 summer job vacancies on a dedicated portal on its Find a Job website.

4. What has happened to the number of young people working while studying?
The percentage of young people working while studying has more than halved since 1997, falling from 42% to 18%.

5. Which expression in the text means 'something you do only because it helps you achieve something else'?
A means to an end. 

2. 請在不參考課文的情況下完成下列練習。選擇一個意思合適的單詞填入句子的空格處。

1. I like being a builder, but it's not exactly a cushy job. You're often exhausted!

2. Young people these days don't work like we used to. In my day work was nothing but hard graft.

3. The most important thing is: never be late. Punctuality is very important at work.

4. I have a second job at the weekends tending bar. I often make cocktails!

5. I've been a seasonal worker for years. I work summers in parks and winters on the slopes.