BUSINESS ENGLISH

SESSION 1

Survival of the Fittest

According to Payscale, a leading compensation platform, on average, people will spend

approximately 13 years and two months of their lives at work. That means that employers have a
lot of time to influence employee behavior, shape the way employees think and what they
believe is possible and genuinely impact their lives and the lives of their families – all of these
can be in a positive or a negative way.

There are certain key components employers should consider when building their wellbeing
program. Each of these comes in different shapes and sizes and a different price points, but
having programs in each of these areas can help employers create the synergy that’s needed to
move their organization forward, no matter what industry they are in.

1. Career – Providing employees with career guidance demonstrates an employer’s

commitment to their future. This should be more than just job training. Coaching should
include; building a road map to help them to identify and pursue their career goals,
instilling confidence in their abilities and learning critical skills needed to succeed in
today’s work environment. Don’t be concerned, real career coaching should lead to
initial higher attrition as employees who are bogging down your company (because they
are not happy) will self-select out of the organization.

2. Financial Wellness – Employees work to earn money to live, helping employees achieve
financial wellness is, in part, the responsibility of an employer. Services like debt
management programs, interest free financing for medical or major life expenses (e.g.,
air conditioning units or refrigerators) are relatively inexpensive to the employer but can
be life altering for the employee.

3. Fun – Employers who incorporate fun into every aspect of the employee’s day are more
likely to be rewarded with more loyal employees. Employers who take it a step further
and institute programs like vacation savings accounts, where employees (and even
employers) contribute to an account to save for vacations and then purchase those
 vacations on a discount, create positive memories associated with the organization and
those positive feelings produce more motivated employees.

4. Health – What used to be known as the apex of employee wellness programs is now just
considered the ground floor. Employers, who are considering instituting wellbeing
programs now must include basic components like chronic condition management,
rewards and incentives, behavior modification programs (weight loss and tobacco
cessation), biometric screenings and online assessments.

5. Leadership training – Employees who do not rate their direct supervisor highly are likely
to leave an organization and many will negatively impact the organization before they
leave. Training supervisors on how to communication, treat employees with dignity,
respect and professionalism will reduce unwanted turnover. In addition, employers who
consistently let employees know how their job effects the company and its clients can
move the company forward quickly than those who keep everything hush-hush.

6. Emotional/spiritual wellness – Helping employees search for the deeper meaning in life
and manage the everyday stressors of home and work will ultimately makes them happier
and more satisfied in their professional and personal lives which will directly impacts the
success as an organization.

7. Social Responsibility – Employees want to work for companies who are altruistic and
want to give back to the communities in which they live and work. Programs that provide
employees paid time off from work to volunteer and programs that directly collect funds
to donate to charities create a connection for employees to the companies they work for
which in turn boosts employee motivation, productivity, morale and overall job
satisfaction.

8. Sustainability – Companies that are aware of their global footprint and want to minimize
their environmental impact on the world around them for future generations are more
inclined to attract employees whose values align. When people are passionate about a
cause they are more willing to go above and beyond for the team and the cause.

At the end of the day, there are countless advantages to keeping employee healthy and happy
however, instituting a corporate wellbeing program that encapsulates this is no longer just a
luxury. Employers who actively look to create a holistic positive employee experience within
their organization are much more likely to attract and retain the best employees, become the
employer of choice and ultimately be rewarded by financial factors that directly impact the
organization – for example, lower absenteeism, lower healthcare costs and higher profits.
Wellbeing is really a case of survival of the fittest!
WHEN® Strategic Advisory Board Member,
LAURIE A BREDNICH | CEO of HR Company Store
Source: http://www.findyourwhen.com/career/survival-of-the-fittest/

Answer the following questions based on the passage above.

1. How does a company affect the lives of its employees?

2. What should companies do to make the employees put their best effort to achieve the
company’s target?

3. Do you feel happy with what you do every day (or with your job)?

4. Can money in the form of salary/incentives from your employees make you loyal and
perform better at work?

Match the words on the left columns with their designated definition.
1. wellbeing a) a person or organization that employs
people
2. employers b) to include something as part of
something larger
3. to incorporate c) the highest point or top of a shape or
object
4. chronic d) A condition when you are not in the
place where you are expected to be,
especially at school or work
5. apex e) the state of feeling healthy and happy
6. countless f) something given in exchange for good
behavior or good work, etc.
7. absenteeism g) continuing for a long time
8. reward h) very many; too many to be counted

Simple present tense

This is the Present Simple of the verb work:

I work
You work
He / She / It works
We work
They work

The Present Simple is the same as the infinitive (without “to”). This is the form of the
word you will find in a dictionary.

Present Simple: 3rd person singular

Be careful! The third person singular form of the Present Simple is different. The 3rd
person singular is he / she / it.

Here, we add an -s to the verb:

Sara  works  all day.

She  cooks  dinner.

Using the Present Simple

We use the Present Simple tense for things we do every day: repeated actions and

habits.

These are the things that Sara does every day:

She  wakes up  early every day.

She  gets up.
She  has  a shower.
She  brushes  her teeth.
She  gets  dressed.
She  goes  to the kitchen.
She  has  a cup of coffee.
She  leaves  home and  walks  to the station.
She  waits  for the train  and  looks  at her phone.
She  talks  on the phone.
She  writes  emails.
She  has  meetings.
She  has  lunch in a café.
Sara  works  all day.
She  finishes  work  and  goes  home.
She  cooks  dinner.
She  watches  television.
She  goes  to bed.
She  sleeps.
She  dreams.

We also use the Present Simple for things that are always true (permanent states):
Sara  works  for a big company.
She really  likes  Facebook.

http://bigbusinessenglish.com/the-present-simple-tense-saras-day/
you can click on the following link to learn more.

Practice

2. The sky   blue. (be)

 

3. Tom and Sarah   three children. (have)

 

4. David   to the cinema every weekend. (go)

 

5. I   three languages. (speak)

 

6. Sarah   English every evening. (study)

 

7. We   cold in winter. (feel)

 

8. James and Susanna   very tired. (be)

 

9. You never   my birthday. (forget)

 

10. Jason   television in the evenings. (wa