General Training IELTS Reading test 10

Read the texts and answer the questions. Type your answers in the spaces provided.

WWW.TRADE WITH ME.COM
1. For sale: iPhone X. In very good condition without protective rubber case. Headphones are gone but otherwise in perfect working order. Looking for £150 but willing to accept offers.
2. 52 inch flat screen LCD television for sale. Small scratch on the top but the screen is OK. Have to sell because I am leaving the country, so will consider any offer.
3. Playstation games (20 different games). Brand new, in box with manuals. Unwanted gift. All reasonable offers considered.
4. For sale – complete dining room set (6 chairs and table). In reasonable condition although may need repainting. Table can fold for storage. Buyer will need to collect. £250 (price is non-negotiable)
5. Zanussi Fridge Freezer. 1.6 metres tall. Four years old. Motor still works but door is not sealing closed (will need new seal). Free to anyone willing to collect.
6. Wanted: cheap laptop computer. Doesn’t need to be in very good condition so long as it works. Needed for word processing and surfing the internet, but not much more. Willing to pay up to £200 for the right machine. Must have all cables and accessories, as well as a carry bag.
7. Boat trailer needed. Must be able to take small boat (2 metres long). Must be in good condition with no rust or damage. Will pay up to £250 depending on size. I can collect from anywhere in the country.
8. I am looking for any antique figurines from the Lladro collection. Will pay a good price for any authentic pieces in good condition. We will come to you to evaluate any piece that you are interested in selling, but please send a photograph of the figurine first.
Section 1
Questions 1 – 7

Classify the following as relating to which advertisement.

Write A-H in your answer sheet. Use each advert once only.

The advertiser…
1. …is willing to travel after they have seen the item.
2. …does not require payment
3. …is selling something they were given
4. …is selling because they are relocating
5. …is missing an accessory
6. …is not willing to change their price
7. …is indifferent to the condition of the item

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Wharf to wharf at a time that suits you – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days of the year. Great Barrier water taxis can take you from the main harbour to any of the local marinas for a set fee using our on-demand service – you call us and tell us when you want to leave and where you want to go, and we’ll be there. Our fleet of safe, high speed and comfortable Water Taxis are driven by professional skippers who have years of local experience.

Fishing charter

Unlike road taxis, we can deliver you to more than just your final destination – we service the Hauraki Gulf so can drop you on one of the secret, secluded beaches or perfect fishing spots. Catch your own fish for dinner! The clean and sparkling blue waters in the local area are abundant with sea life, and our knowledgeable skippers can guarantee you won’t return empty handed. Fishing charters are aboard our high speed boat, comfortable for a maximum of 4 people. A half-day fishing charter costs $275, which includes fuel and skipper.

Harbour tours

We also offer the best in harbour tours, taking you from the Great Barrier wharf to all the places of interest. Get perfect views of the city, as well as the harbour bridge, before setting off to the see the internationally famous Dorin Cliffs. From here we sail to Westhaven Marina, one of the largest marinas in the southern hemisphere and home to a wide range of pleasure boats of all shapes and sizes. Then on to Golden Sands beach before returning to the wharf via the Marble, a stunning rock formation that can’t be seen without a boat. The whole trip takes two hours, with an option to stop at Golden Sands beach and catch the next water taxi back to the wharf. The harbour tour costs $45 per person and includes tea, coffee and light snacks.
Questions 8 – 14

Answer the questions below using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.

Type your in boxes 8 – 14 on your answer sheet.
1. The cost to visit any of the local is fixed.
2. You can book a water taxi using their
3. You can go fishing or spend some time on little known
4. The driver and the cost of are included in the half day fishing trip.
5. The Harbour tour includes a visit to the world renowned .
6. The last thing passengers can see on the Harbour tour before going back to the wharf is .
7. The harbour trip costs $45 and includes drinks and .

Grievance procedures

A good contract that clearly lays out the terms and conditions of employment is essential in reducing frictions and grievances in the workplaces. However, there are times when despite the most comprehensive contract, disagreements can arise between employer and employee. A key element in reducing the impact of such problems is often the establishment of a formal grievance procedure – a standardized set of procedures to follow when someone has a complaint or a grievance. This needs to be clearly laid out at the outset of any working relationship.

For grievance procedures to be effective, both the employer and the employee should see them as positive, a method of facilitating the open discussion of areas that could possibly cause ill feeling. When managed poorly, grievance procedures, even when only laid out in a contract and not actually being used, can create a feeling amongst employees that the employer is not offering support, but is instead protecting their interests through legal means. Even further, some employees are hesitant to use the grievance process out of fear of recrimination. Some studies have shown that employees who raise grievances tend to have lower performance evaluations, promotion rates, and work attendance afterwards. This suggests that some employers may retaliate against employees who raise complaints. It is vital that a company’s grievance procedures include steps to prevent a backlash against those who choose to use them.

From the manager’s side, when an employee raises a grievance, it can be perceived as lack of managerial capability, causing the manager to overreact at the perceived suggestion that they have done something unfair or unethical to require the grievance at all.

There are two key factors in establishing a workable grievance procedure. The first is the concept of a progression of levels at which a given complaint may be handled. Typically this begins with a step that provides for rapid and informal addressing of a complaint by those immediately involved, with appeals to successively higher levels of management or other representatives possible in the event that lower-level resolution doesn’t work. The second factor is the availability of an alternative procedure, to be used if several successive attempts at negotiation have failed. Typically this will be mediation – negotiation with a third party – or arbitration – the introduction of a neutral party to preside over discussions.
Many grievances can be resolved quickly by correcting a misunderstanding, or with a simple negotiation. In this case the grievance procedure saves time, money, and the relationship between the parties. Having the issue handled by those immediately involved is a benefit as well, as they know more about the problem at hand than do people at higher levels.

However, a given grievance may involve a more difficult issue, or one or more of the parties may refuse to settle with a simple negotiation. The availability of appeals to a higher level not only provides an end to what might otherwise become frustrating and obstinate refusal to compromise, but often serves to remind a given representative at any level that reasonableness at this stage will eliminate the need for review of his or her actions by someone higher up. By limiting the time allotted to each step of the grievance process, neither party can stall the process indefinitely.

In the event that the parties have discussed the matter internally at all levels provided in the procedure and are still unable to come to satisfactory solution, it is important that the mediator or arbitrator select has been agreed upon by both parties. The arbitrator or mediator should be familiar with the industry concerned, and should have access to a set of standards against which the reasonableness of proposals made in grievance negotiations can be measured. Previous arbitrators’ decisions (generally known as “awards”) are indexed and published, meaning that the intermediary has access to previous cases in order to make as informed a decision as possible.
Section 2
Question 15 – 19

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

Write your answer in box 15 – 19 on your answer sheet.

15. Employee grievances
1. are avoided by a carefully worded contract.
2. can be minimised by having a clear procedure.
3. are often seen as positive.
4. must be responded to formally.
15.

16. The establishment of a grievance process
1. often leads to friction.
2. can lead employees to feel victimised.
3. needs to be put in place at the beginning of a working relationship.
4. give the company the appearance of not being supportive.
16.

17. A grievance
1. should first be addressed by those concerned.
2. can be mistaken for a lack of ability from the employee.
3. should go directly to senior management.
4. can only be raised at a management level.
17.

18. Resolutions to grievances
1. need to be negotiated with a third party.
2. can often be found by clearing up a point of confusion.
3. are better found by senior management.
4. have a high cost.
18.

19. Mediators or arbitrators can help resolve a difficult grievance because
1. they have more knowledge of the problem.
2. awards given are normally higher.
3. they have a time limit in place.
4. they are commonly selected by agreement from both parties.
19.

Job advertising

It can be useful to think of a job advertisement as a function of advertising. The job is your product; the readers of the job advert are your potential customers. Job adverts and recruitment processes should follow the traditional AIDA selling format: Attention, Interest, Desire and Action. This means that good job advertisements must first attract attention (from appropriate job-seekers); attract relevant interest (by establishing relevance in the minds of the ideal candidates); create desire (to pursue what looks like a great opportunity), and finally provide a clear instruction for the next action or response.

Unfortunately for those recruiting, these simple steps are often lost in the process of writing, designing and placing a job advertisement. A quick glance on a Sunday morning through almost any of the main broadsheet newspapers will demonstrate perhaps the most common mistake – the layout of the advert. Too many different font styles, logos or other graphics and layouts can be distracting, slowing the reader; smaller font styles, when combined with the generally low quality paper found in newspapers, mean that some people can’t actually read the message at all. The same is true of using upper case letters lettering, a feature some mistakenly believe will make the reader keener to read what is written. The key to successful job advertising is to follow the ‘less is more’ approach. Keep your text to a minimum and, unless necessary, avoid too much technical depth. Keep enough space around the text to attract attention to it. Giving text some space is a very powerful way of attracting the eye, and also a way of ensuring the advert is written – and therefore can be read – efficiently.

Obscure headlines that do not clearly communicate the nature of the position can also make many potential viable candidates give up and move to the next job advert. It is far more effective to use one simple headline, and make the job advert headline relevant and clear. Normally the logical headline is the job title itself – this is after all what people will be looking for. If the job title does not implicitly describe the job function, then use a subheading to do so. Better still, if you find yourself writing a job advert for a truly obscure job title which does not convey what the job function is, consider changing the job title.

Another common error is trying to make your advertisement stand out by using irregular box sizes, or even half page or full page advertisements. The problem here is largely one of expectation – people become familiar with the general layout of the job advertisements and subconsciously dismiss shapes and sizes that do not conform to what has become accepted as ‘standard’.

A useful point to keep in mind is that you are recruiting a person to do a job, so focus on attracting the person. It is common for many job adverts to aim solely on the job itself, with no specific direction towards the person. Refer to the reader as ‘you’ and use the second person (‘you’, ‘your’ and ‘yours’ etc) in the description of the requirements and expectations of the candidate and the job role. This helps people to visualise themselves in the role.
Questions 20 to 25

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage?

In boxes 20-25 on your answer sheet write

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1. Writing a good job advertisement follows the common pattern for selling a product.
2. The medium on which it is printed can affect the appearance of the advertisement.
3. Using upper case letters can make your message clearer to read.
4. The content should fill all of the advertising space.
5. Headings or subheadings should clearly define the job.
6. Readers often choose to ignore irregularly shaped advertisements.

Reading Passage 3

Working from home

A: Can you feel your anxiety and stress levels increasing every time you get caught in a traffic jam? Do you find it difficult to control your tongue when your boss points out your shortcomings yet again? Do you just not have the right kind of office attire, hate spending hours shopping for it and, frankly, would feel much better if you only had more independence, more freedom, more flexible hours and fewer people on your back? Do you yearn for state-of-the-art technology in your home, that … wait for it … you haven’t had to pay for? If you are shouting an enthusiastic ‘Yes!’ in answer to these questions, then it could be time to make a career and life change that may not even require you to quit your job. Just suggest to your boss that you wish to become one of the new breed of executives whose office is based at home.

B: Working from home is a relatively new phenomenon, but is becoming an increasingly popular option with both businesses and employees. The technology available to us now means that we no longer need to be in the same office building as our colleagues to communicate effectively with each other. E-mail, video conferencing, mobile telephones and more, mean that we can do business just as efficiently, regardless of our location.

C: Companies may choose to employ a proportion of their staff as home-based workers, as, of course, a workforce set up in such a way requires far less office space and fewer parking facilities. The fixed costs of a business can be dramatically reduced. Employees can enjoy the added benefits of freedom to schedule the day as they choose and freedom to spend more time at home with their families. Working from home can be a particularly valid option for young mothers who wish to pursue their careers but find it impossible to be out of the house for nine or ten hours per day.

D: We can even go so far as to say that the working-from-home phenomenon could be one of the answers to the pollution problems which the modern world has inflicted upon itself. Fewer people travelling to work every day equals fewer cars. Fewer cars, of course, equates to lower CO2 levels in the atmosphere. Governments have been trying for years to persuade us to forsake our private car journey to work each day for the hideous experience of a crowded bus or train, but this is still unpopular. Most of us have been resistant, even when parking fees in city areas have been on the rise and unpredictable traffic patterns mean we have to leave our house 30 minutes earlier than necessary anyway. But working from home gives us no excuse whatsoever to emit CO2 into the atmosphere twice a day in our working week.

E: But what are the drawbacks to working from home? There must be some or everybody would be doing it. For many of us, work is a means of escaping our nearest and dearest and making our own mark on the world. The relationships we have with our colleagues, be they good or bad, are a significant part of our life and should not be overlooked – after all, full-time workers spend a third of their day in their workplace. After-hours pursuits of a game of squash or a pint in the pub become part of our daily routine. We cement sound friendships at work and an astounding percentage of us meet our life partner at our place of work. The people there have similar ambitions and business interests and we are, after all, social animals. The majority of us become depressed and withdrawn if we do not have enough interaction with others. Some people who work from home feel that, because they do spend a large proportion of the day at home alone with few distractions, they are actually much more productive and can get tasks done in a much shorter time than in an office environment. Others, however, may be demotivated by the isolation and find it difficult to get down to tasks which have a more intangible deadline.

F: As with most aspects of life, a balance is probably the best solution for the majority of workers – a job based at home which requires regular contact with colleagues at regular meetings. Management surveys show that successful business is easier if we operate as a team: brainstorming and sharing ideas and offering support and motivation to each other. After all, we are only human and we need others to complain to if we have a bad day at work!
Reading Passage 3

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 26 – 40 which are based on Reading Passage 3.
Questions 26 – 29

Complete the sentences below. Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text.
1. Without office technology we couldn’t .
2. With fewer requirements for space, businesses can benefit from lower static .
3. Despite political pressure, public transport is still .
4. It is important that the social aspects of working in an office are not
Questions 30 – 34

Complete the summary by using words from the box below. Write the correct letter A – H.

Technology has allowed us to (30) at home instead of the office. For the company, there are (31) incentives and for the employee there is more (32) . There are even (33) for the environment. However, there is a (34) factor to be considered.

A benefits E financial

B friendships F flexibility

C conduct business G release

D workplace H psychological

Questions 35 – 40

Choose the appropriate heading for each paragraph of the following text from the list below.

List of headings
1. Time for a change?
2. Social impact
3. Management decisions
4. Flexibility of technology
5. Wasted time on the road
6. Technology keeping us at home
7. Benefits for all
8. Business in the workplace
9. Keeping it clean
10. The best of both worlds
1. Paragraph A
2. Paragraph B
3. Paragraph C
4. Paragraph D
5. Paragraph E
6. Paragraph F

Exercise / Test Summary

Information

Results

Results

Categories

1. Question

2. Question

3. Question

4. Question

Job advertising

5. Question

A benefits	E financial
B friendships	F flexibility
C conduct business	G release
D workplace	H psychological