B1 Unit 1 Reading bank

Read the article quickly and choose the statement that sums up the main idea.

• More companies plan to increase the number of female managers aged between thirty

  and fifty-four over the next three years.

• Multinational companies in twenty-six countries start programmes to encourage workers to take career breaks in order to gain more skills.

• A telecoms company plans to help people return to work after they have had years away from their job.

Complete the definitions with the words/phrases in bold in the article.

1.  People considered for a job or training programme are (a)   .

Complete the definitions with the words/phrases in bold in the article.

2.  A period of ten years is a (a)   .

Complete the definitions with the words/phrases in bold in the article.

3   (a)   is when you meet people involved in the same kind of work to share information and support.

Complete the definitions with the words/phrases in bold in the article.

4. Recruit and (a)   are verbs that mean ‘employ’.

Complete the definitions with the words/phrases in bold in the article.

5.  A (a)   is a period of time when people take time away from their job, for example to look after their children or family.

Complete the definitions with the words/phrases in bold in the article.

6. When a woman spends time away from work after she has a baby, it’s called (a)  

Complete the definitions with the words/phrases in bold in the article.

7. (a)   are in charge of small groups of people, but do not take important decisions that affect the whole organization.

Complete the definitions with the words/phrases in bold in the article.

8. People working for a company for a short time without pay are on (a)  

Find the numbers in the article and match them with the information they refer to.

• number of people Vodafone wants to employ over three years

• 16

• countries where the scheme will operate

• 96 million

• number of weeks that new mothers can have paid leave

• 7,500

• number of management jobs at Vodafone

• 26

• approximate number of women around the world on a career break

• 1,000