Question

Job sharing refers to the situation in which two people divide the responsibility of one full-time job．The two people willingly act as part-time workers, enough hours between them to fulfill the duties of a full-time worker．If they each work half the job, for example, they each receive 50 per cent of the job's wages, its holidays and its other benefits．

Job sharing differs from conventional （常规的） part-time work in that it occurs mainly in the more highly skilled and professional areas, which require higher levels of responsibility and employee commitment．

Job sharing should not be confused with the term work sharing, which refers to increasing the number of jobs by reducing the number of hours of each existing job, thus offering more positions to the growing number of unemployed people．Job sharing, by contrast, is not designed to address unemployment problems; its focus, rather, is to provide well-paid work for skilled workers and professionals who want more free time for other activities．

As would be expected, most job sharers are women．A survey carried out in 1988 by Britain's Equal Opportunities Commission showed that 78 per cent of sharers were female, the majority of whom were between 20 and 40 years of age．Subsequent studies have come up with similar results．Many of these women were re-entering the job market after having had children, but they chose not to seek part-time work because it would have meant lower status．Job sharing also offered an acceptable shift back into full-time work after a long absence．

The necessity of close cooperation when sharing a job with another person makes the actual work quite different from conventional one-position jobs．However, to ensure a greater chance that the partnership will succeed, each person needs to know the strengths, weaknesses and preferences of his or her partner before applying for a position．Moreover, there must be a fair division of both routine tasks and interesting ones．In sum, for a position to be job-shared well, the two individuals must be well matched and must treat each other as equals．

1.In what way is work sharing different from job sharing?

A.Work sharing requires more working hours．

B.Work sharing is aimed at creating more jobs．

C.Work sharing provides a more satisfactory salary．

D.Work sharing depends on the employer's decision．

2.According to Paragraph 4, young mothers preferred job sharing to conventional part-time work mainly because ________．

A.they sought higher social status

B.they were over ideal working ages

C.they had difficulty finding full-time jobs

D.they had to take care of both work and family

3.In job sharing the partners should ________．

A.enjoy equal social status

B.have similar work experience

C.keep in touch with each other

D.know each other very well

4.The main purpose of the passage is to ________．

A.describe job sharing in general

B.discuss how to provide more jobs

C.recommend job sharing to women

D.compare job sharing with work sharing

Answer

1.B

2.A

3.D

4.A

【解析】

本文是说明文。文章介绍了工作岗位分享制（job sharing），包括它的特点，与兼职工作的区别，现状和要求等。

1.细节理解题。由第三段第1句话可知工作分享是指通过缩短劳动时间、共同分享工作，保证大家都有工作可干而不至于失业，从而达到稳定就业的目的。故选B。

2.细节理解题。由第四段倒数第2句Many of these women were re-entering the job market after having had children, but they chose not to seek part-time work because it would have meant lower status．可知，年轻母亲重新进入职场，更喜欢工作分享而不是兼职工作，是因为兼职工作的地位比较低，而工作分享的社会地位相对高一些。故选A。

3.细节理解题。由最后一段第2句each person needs to know the strengths, weaknesses and preferences of his or her partner before applying for a position．可知，在申请工作之前，合作伙伴要相互了解各自的优势，弱点和喜好。故选D。

4.主旨大意题。通读全文可知，本文是从大体上介绍工作岗位分享制。故选A。