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苏格兰的同工同酬丑闻
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就在2005年圣诞节前夕,弗朗西丝·斯托吉尔科维奇得到了一笔听起来像是白给的钱。
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双语精读
Just before Christmas 2005, Frances Stojilkovic was offered what sounded like free money. She was working as a carer, providing in-home assistance to elderly and disabled people.
就在2005年圣诞节前夕,弗朗西丝·斯托吉尔科维奇得到了一笔听起来像是白给的钱。她是一名护工,为老年人和残疾人提供居家帮助。
The letter she received, along with 11,000 other women working for Glasgow city council, told Stojilkovic she was entitled to compensation resulting from wage disparity between men and women.
斯托吉尔科维奇(以及其他1.1万名就职于格拉斯哥市议会的女性)收到的这封信说,她有权获得由于男女工资差异而产生的补偿金。
This was the first time most of the women had heard that they were being paid less than their male counterparts -- but what drew the attention of Stojilkovic and her friends was the promise of a cash injection.
这是大多数女性第一次听说她们的薪酬低于男性--但引起斯托吉尔科维奇和她的朋友们注意的是将给她们一笔钱的承诺。
"It was a carrot dangling before Christmas. Everyone wanted to have something for their kids," she told me recently.
“那是圣诞节前悬挂着的胡萝卜。每个人都想给自己的孩子买点东西,”她最近告诉我。
Stojilkovic is a no-nonsense woman, born and bred in Glasgow. When she got the letter, she was in her early 40s, and had been working as a home carer for about a year.
斯托吉尔科维奇在格拉斯哥出生和长大,是一个干练务实的女人。她收到这封信时40出头,已经做了一年左右的家庭护工工作。
She loved the job, and was conscious of its importance – sometimes she was the only person someone spoke to that day. But it did not pay well. Many of Stojilkovic's colleagues, especially the single mothers, worked multiple jobs to make ends meet: night shifts cleaning or weekends in retail.
她热爱这份工作,并意识到这份工作的重要性--有时她是客户那天唯一可以说说话的人。但这份工作的报酬并不高。斯托吉尔科维奇的许多同事,特别是单身母亲,为了维持生计要打好几份工:上夜班做清洁或周末做零售工作。
She considered herself lucky because she and her husband both had jobs – he worked in restaurants – so they had two incomes. But she still worked a lot of overtime, and weeks would go by when she and her husband saw little of each other.
她认为自己很幸运,因为她和丈夫都有工作(他在餐馆工作),所以他们有两份收入。但她仍然经常加班,她和丈夫常常好几个星期都见不到几次面。
Stojilkovic was excited at the prospect of a payout. Having done the job for a year, she was told, she was entitled to 2,800 pounds.
斯托吉尔科维奇对可能获得的这一大笔钱感到兴奋。她做了一年护工,听说可以获得2800英镑。
The compensation package, negotiated behind the scenes between Glasgow city council and the unions, had strict limits. The maximum amount anyone would receive was 9,000 pounds.
格拉斯哥市议会和工会私下谈判的补偿方案有多项严格限制。任何人可以获得的最高金额是9000英镑。
But some of her colleagues who had worked as carers for 10 or 20 years wondered if this sold them short. Stojilkovic remembers that their managers always had the same response: "Yous are being greedy. It's a lot of money."
但她的一些做了十年、二十年护理员的同事想知道,9000英镑的补偿金是否低估了她们的价值。斯托吉尔科维奇记得,她们的经理总是有同样的回答:“你们太贪心了。这是一大笔钱。
The letter told the women that if they didn't take the money, they had the right to pursue claims through employment tribunals with private lawyers, but warned "you could end up with nothing".
这封信告诉这些女性,如果她们不收下这笔钱,她们有权通过设有私人律师的劳工法庭提起诉讼索赔,还警告称“你们可能最终一分钱都拿不到”。
As instructed by the letter, Stojilkovic made her way to a leisure centre in town where she would receive "independent, impartial legal advice".
按照这封信的指示,斯托吉尔科维奇前往镇上的一个休闲中心,在那里,她将接受“独立、公正的法律建议”。
In return for the one-off lump sum, the women, who mostly worked in care and education, were required to sign paperwork giving up their right to make further equal pay claims.
为了得到一次性支付的补偿金,这些主要在护理和教育行业工作的女性被要求签署文件,放弃进一步提出同工同酬要求的权利。
词汇预习
response [高考]
美[rɪˈspɑːns] | 英[rɪˈspɒns]
n. 反应;回答;响应;答复
sum [高考]
美[sʌm] | 英[sʌm]
n. 金额;总数;要点 v. 概括;总结;归纳;总计
employment [高考]
美[ɪmˈplɔɪmənt] | 英[ɪmˈplɔɪmənt]
n. 职业;雇用;使用
pursue [高考]
美[pərˈsuː] | 英[pəˈsjuː]
v. 追求;追捕;继续执行;从事
multiple [高考]
美[ˈmʌltɪpl] | 英[ˈmʌltɪpl]
adj. 多种多样的;许多的 n. 倍数;并联
conscious [高考]
美[ˈkɑːnʃəs] | 英[ˈkɒnʃəs]
adj. 神志清醒的;意识到的;自觉的;有意的 n. 意识
overtime [高考]
美[ˈoʊvərtaɪm] | 英[ˈəʊvətaɪm]
n. 加班时间(加班加点费);(比赛)延长时间 adv. 在规定时间之外(超出时间地)
nonsense [高考]
美[ˈnɑːnsens] | 英[ˈnɒnsns]
n. 废话;胡说;荒唐
leisure [高考]
美[ˈliːʒər] | 英[ˈleʒə(r)]
n. 闲暇;休闲
compensation [高考]
美[ˌkɑːmpenˈseɪʃn] | 英[ˌkɒmpenˈseɪʃn]
n. 补偿;赔偿;赔偿金
centre [高考]
美[ˈsentər] | 英[ˈsentə(r)]
n. 中心;集中点 v. 居中;使集中 adj. 中心的;中央的
equal [高考]
美[ˈiːkwəl] | 英[ˈiːkwəl]
adj. 相等的;平等的 vt. 比得上;等于 n. 同辈;平等;(同等的)人或事物
male [高考]
美[meɪl] | 英[meɪl]
adj. 男性的;雄性的 n. 男子;雄性动物
cash [高考]
美[kæʃ] | 英[kæʃ]
n. 现金 vt. 付现款;兑现 adj. 现金的
maximum [高考]
美[ˈmæksɪməm] | 英[ˈmæksɪməm]
n. 最大量;最大限度;最高点 adj. 最高的;最大极限的
legal [高考]
美[ˈliːɡl] | 英[ˈliːɡl]
adj. 法定的;法律的;合法的
assistance [高考]
美[əˈsɪstəns] | 英[əˈsɪstəns]
n. 援助;帮助
wage [高考]
美[weɪdʒ] | 英[weɪdʒ]
n. 工资;报酬 v. 开展;从事;进行(战争、运动)
greedy [高考]
美[ˈɡriːdi] | 英[ˈɡriːdi]
adj. 贪婪的
paperwork [高考]
美[ˈpeɪpərwɜːrk] | 英[ˈpeɪpəwɜːk]
n. 文书工作
end up with [高考]
美 | 英
结束于; 以 ... 告终
further [高考]
美[ˈfɜːrðər] | 英[ˈfɜːðə(r)]
adv. 更远地,再往前地;进一步;此外,而且 adj. 更多的,进一步的;(距离上)更远的,较远的 v. 促进,推进
prospect [高考]
美[ˈprɑːspekt] | 英[ˈprɒspekt , prəˈspekt]
n. 希望;前景;景色 v. 勘探;寻找
where [高考]
美[wer] | 英[weə(r)]
adv. 在哪里;在那个地方 conj. 在 ... 地方
would [高考]
美[wʊd , wəd] | 英[wʊd , wəd]
aux. 将;可能;大概;总会;愿意;will的过去式
lump [四级]
美[lʌmp] | 英[lʌmp]
n.块;团;笨重的人;瘤 v.使成块;形成团状;归并;(笨重地)移动 adj. 成团的;总共的 adv. 很;非常
injection [四级]
美[ɪnˈdʒekʃn] | 英[ɪnˈdʒekʃn]
n. 注射;注射物;数学函数
retail [四级]
美[ˈriːteɪl , rɪˈteɪl] | 英[ˈriːteɪl , rɪˈteɪl]
n. 零售 vt. 零售;传述 adv. 以零售形式
along with [四级]
美[əˈlɔːŋ wɪð] | 英[əˈlɒŋ wɪð]
与...在一起;在...以外;沿着;随着;(除…之外)又…,加之
make ends meet [四级]
美[meɪk 'endz miːt] | 英[meɪk 'endz miːt]
量入为出; 使 ... 收支相抵; 靠微薄收入为生
conscious of [四级]
美 | 英
意识到
impartial [六级]
美[ɪmˈpɑːrʃl] | 英[ɪmˈpɑːʃl]
adj. 公正的;不偏不倚的
right to [六级]
美 | 英
...的权力;对某事物的权利
payout [专八]
美[ˈpeˌaʊt] | 英[ˈpeɪaʊt]
n. 支出;花费
saw [专八]
美[sɔː] | 英[sɔː]
n. 锯;谚语,格言 v. 锯,用锯割开;看见,明白(see的过去式)
disparity [专八]
美[dɪˈspærəti] | 英[dɪˈspærəti]
n. 不一致
less than [雅思]
美[les ðən] | 英[les ðən]
不到; 少于
重点讲解
Just before Christmas 2005, Frances Stojilkovic was offered what sounded like free money. She was working as a carer, providing in-home assistance to elderly and disabled people.
就在2005年圣诞节前夕,弗朗西丝·斯托吉尔科维奇得到了一笔听起来像是白给的钱。她是一名护工,为老年人和残疾人提供居家帮助。
elderly adj. 年纪较大的
【例】the elderly parents 年迈的父母
the elderly 老人
【近义词】old/aged adj. 年老的
【辨析】elder adj. (两者间)年纪较大的
【例】the elder sister 姐姐
be entitled to sth/to do sth 有某种权利或资格
【例】Employees are entitled to a certain number of annual leave days per year.
员工每年有权享受一定天数的年假。
As a member of the club, you are entitled to use all its facilities.
作为俱乐部的成员,你有权使用俱乐部中的所有设施。
【近义词】have a right to/be eligible to do sth 有权利/资格做某事
【拓展】have a sense of entitlement 有特权感
The letter she received, along with 11,000 other women working for Glasgow city council, told Stojilkovic she was entitled to compensation resulting from wage disparity between men and women.
斯托吉尔科维奇(以及其他1.1万名就职于格拉斯哥市议会的女性)收到的这封信说,她有权获得由于男女工资差异而产生的补偿金。
elderly adj. 年纪较大的
【例】the elderly parents 年迈的父母
the elderly 老人
【近义词】old/aged adj. 年老的
【辨析】elder adj. (两者间)年纪较大的
【例】the elder sister 姐姐
be entitled to sth/to do sth 有某种权利或资格
【例】Employees are entitled to a certain number of annual leave days per year.
员工每年有权享受一定天数的年假。
As a member of the club, you are entitled to use all its facilities.
作为俱乐部的成员,你有权使用俱乐部中的所有设施。
【近义词】have a right to/be eligible to do sth 有权利/资格做某事
【拓展】have a sense of entitlement 有特权感
This was the first time most of the women had heard that they were being paid less than their male counterparts -- but what drew the attention of Stojilkovic and her friends was the promise of a cash injection.
这是大多数女性第一次听说她们的薪酬低于男性--但引起斯托吉尔科维奇和她的朋友们注意的是将给她们一笔钱的承诺。
injection n.
1. 注射
【例】to give sb an injection 给某人打针
2. 大量注入(资金等物)
【例】The government's injection of capital into the failing banks helped to stabilize the financial system.
政府向陷入困境的银行注入大量资金,帮助稳定了金融系统。
dangle v. 悬挂;悬荡
【例】Don’t keep me dangling: tell me if I passed the test.
别让我的心老悬着, 告诉我考试及格了没有。
He dangled the prospect of higher wages in front of me.
他用加薪的前景来吊我胃口/诱惑我。
“It was a carrot dangling before Christmas. Everyone wanted to have something for their kids,” she told me recently.
“那是圣诞节前悬挂着的胡萝卜。每个人都想给自己的孩子买点东西,”她最近告诉我。
injection n.
1. 注射
【例】to give sb an injection 给某人打针
2. 大量注入(资金等物)
【例】The government's injection of capital into the failing banks helped to stabilize the financial system.
政府向陷入困境的银行注入大量资金,帮助稳定了金融系统。
dangle v. 悬挂;悬荡
【例】Don’t keep me dangling: tell me if I passed the test.
别让我的心老悬着, 告诉我考试及格了没有。
He dangled the prospect of higher wages in front of me.
他用加薪的前景来吊我胃口/诱惑我。
Stojilkovic is a no-nonsense woman, born and bred in Glasgow. When she got the letter, she was in her early 40s, and had been working as a home carer for about a year.
斯托吉尔科维奇在格拉斯哥出生和长大,是一个干练务实的女人。她收到这封信时40出头,已经做了一年左右的家庭护工工作。
no-nonsense adj. 只关注重要的事;不说废话的
【例】She has a no-nonsense approach to management that has increased productivity.
她务实的管理方式提高了生产效率。
【拓展】sense/sensible n./adj. 有道理的判断/明智的;懂事的
【例】Can you talk sense?
你能不能说点正经的?
I like Mary. She is a sensible girl.
我喜欢玛丽,她是个懂事的姑娘。
pay v. 创收;带来好处;获利
【例】Your hard work will pay.
你付出的努力会得到回报的。
【辨析】pay for sth 为某事付出代价
【例】You will pay for your laziness.
你会因懒惰而付出代价的。
She loved the job, and was conscious of its importance – sometimes she was the only person someone spoke to that day. But it did not pay well. Many of Stojilkovic’s colleagues, especially the single mothers, worked multiple jobs to make ends meet: night shifts cleaning or weekends in retail.
她热爱这份工作,并意识到这份工作的重要性--有时她是客户那天唯一可以说说话的人。但这份工作的报酬并不高。斯托吉尔科维奇的许多同事,特别是单身母亲,为了维持生计要打好几份工:上夜班做清洁或周末做零售工作。
no-nonsense adj. 只关注重要的事;不说废话的
【例】She has a no-nonsense approach to management that has increased productivity.
她务实的管理方式提高了生产效率。
【拓展】sense/sensible n./adj. 有道理的判断/明智的;懂事的
【例】Can you talk sense?
你能不能说点正经的?
I like Mary. She is a sensible girl.
我喜欢玛丽,她是个懂事的姑娘。
pay v. 创收;带来好处;获利
【例】Your hard work will pay.
你付出的努力会得到回报的。
【辨析】pay for sth 为某事付出代价
【例】You will pay for your laziness.
你会因懒惰而付出代价的。
She considered herself lucky because she and her husband both had jobs – he worked in restaurants – so they had two incomes. But she still worked a lot of overtime, and weeks would go by when she and her husband saw little of each other.
她认为自己很幸运,因为她和丈夫都有工作(他在餐馆工作),所以他们有两份收入。但她仍然经常加班,她和丈夫常常好几个星期都见不到几次面。
overtime n./adv. 加班
【例】overtime pay 加班费
【拓展】be overloaded with work 超负荷工作
work around-the-clock 全天24小时工作
work 24/7 每周七天,每天24小时待命
the 996 work schedule 996工作制
payout n. 支付给某人的一大笔钱
【例】The insurance company offered a payout to cover the damages.
保险公司提供了赔偿以覆盖损失。
a lottery payout
彩票的大额奖金
Stojilkovic was excited at the prospect of a payout. Having done the job for a year, she was told, she was entitled to 2,800 pounds.
斯托吉尔科维奇对可能获得的这一大笔钱感到兴奋。她做了一年护工,听说可以获得2800英镑。
overtime n./adv. 加班
【例】overtime pay 加班费
【拓展】be overloaded with work 超负荷工作
work around-the-clock 全天24小时工作
work 24/7 每周七天,每天24小时待命
the 996 work schedule 996工作制
payout n. 支付给某人的一大笔钱
【例】The insurance company offered a payout to cover the damages.
保险公司提供了赔偿以覆盖损失。
a lottery payout
彩票的大额奖金
The compensation package, negotiated behind the scenes between Glasgow city council and the unions, had strict limits. The maximum amount anyone would receive was 9,000 pounds.
格拉斯哥市议会和工会私下谈判的补偿方案有多项严格限制。任何人可以获得的最高金额是9000英镑。
behind the scenes 私下地;秘密地
【例】to operate behind the scenes 在幕后操作
【近义词】under the table/off the record 私下地;非正式地
sell sb short 低估某人的价值
【例】You should not sell her short; she is more capable than you think.
你不应该低估她;她比你认为的更有能力。
【拓展】fall short of sth 未达到;不符合
run short of sth 缺少某物
But some of her colleagues who had worked as carers for 10 or 20 years wondered if this sold them short. Stojilkovic remembers that their managers always had the same response: “Yous are being greedy. It’s a lot of money.”
但她的一些做了十年、二十年护理员的同事想知道,9000英镑的补偿金是否低估了她们的价值。斯托吉尔科维奇记得,她们的经理总是有同样的回答:“你们太贪心了。这是一大笔钱。
behind the scenes 私下地;秘密地
【例】to operate behind the scenes 在幕后操作
【近义词】under the table/off the record 私下地;非正式地
sell sb short 低估某人的价值
【例】You should not sell her short; she is more capable than you think.
你不应该低估她;她比你认为的更有能力。
【拓展】fall short of sth 未达到;不符合
run short of sth 缺少某物
The letter told the women that if they didn’t take the money, they had the right to pursue claims through employment tribunals with private lawyers, but warned “you could end up with nothing”.
这封信告诉这些女性,如果她们不收下这笔钱,她们有权通过设有私人律师的劳工法庭提起诉讼索赔,还警告称“你们可能最终一分钱都拿不到”。
claim n.
1. 索赔;索款
【例】to put in a claim for an allowance
提出领取津贴的要求
make a claim for compensation
索要赔偿
2. 拥有某物的权利
【例】They had no claim on the land.
他们无权索要那块土地。
impartial adj. 不偏不倚的;公正的
【例】As chairman, I must remain impartial.
作为主席,我必须保持中立。
【近义词】neutral/unbiased adj. 中立的;没有偏见的
【反义词】partial adj. 片面的;有失偏颇的
one-off adj. 一次性的;非重复的
【例】It’s a one-off payment without additional fees.
这是一次性结清,没有其他费用。
As instructed by the letter, Stojilkovic made her way to a leisure centre in town where she would receive “independent, impartial legal advice”.
按照这封信的指示,斯托吉尔科维奇前往镇上的一个休闲中心,在那里,她将接受“独立、公正的法律建议”。
claim n.
1. 索赔;索款
【例】to put in a claim for an allowance
提出领取津贴的要求
make a claim for compensation
索要赔偿
2. 拥有某物的权利
【例】They had no claim on the land.
他们无权索要那块土地。
impartial adj. 不偏不倚的;公正的
【例】As chairman, I must remain impartial.
作为主席,我必须保持中立。
【近义词】neutral/unbiased adj. 中立的;没有偏见的
【反义词】partial adj. 片面的;有失偏颇的
one-off adj. 一次性的;非重复的
【例】It’s a one-off payment without additional fees.
这是一次性结清,没有其他费用。
In return for the one-off lump sum, the women, who mostly worked in care and education, were required to sign paperwork giving up their right to make further equal pay claims.
为了得到一次性支付的补偿金,这些主要在护理和教育行业工作的女性被要求签署文件,放弃进一步提出同工同酬要求的权利。
claim n.
1. 索赔;索款
【例】to put in a claim for an allowance
提出领取津贴的要求
make a claim for compensation
索要赔偿
2. 拥有某物的权利
【例】They had no claim on the land.
他们无权索要那块土地。
impartial adj. 不偏不倚的;公正的
【例】As chairman, I must remain impartial.
作为主席,我必须保持中立。
【近义词】neutral/unbiased adj. 中立的;没有偏见的
【反义词】partial adj. 片面的;有失偏颇的
one-off adj. 一次性的;非重复的
【例】It’s a one-off payment without additional fees.
这是一次性结清,没有其他费用。
课后练习
Why did Frances Stojilkovic receive free money?
A. Because she was promoted and had a pay rise.
B. Because she had been paid less than male carers.
C. Because she received a bonus for her exceptional work.
D. Because the Glasgow city council increased funds for carers.
How did Frances Stojilkovic perceive her job as a carer?
A. She considered it as an undesirable way to earn money.
B. She was upset that her work took up too much of her free time.
C. She recognized its significance and the impact she had on others' lives.
D. She found the job overly demanding and was looking for other opportunities.
What was the reaction of the senior carers to the compensation package?
A. They were satisfied with the compensation and accepted it without question.
B. They felt that the compensation might be insufficient for their long service.
C. They believed the compensation was too low and decided to negotiate.
D. They refused to receive the compensation and protested to the manager.
What condition was attached to the compensation package offered to the women?
A. They could not request additional compensation after taking the money.
B. They had to agree to work additional hours without further compensation.
C. They had to promise to stay with the company for a certain number of years.
D. They were required to accept a much lower pay in the future.