Peugeot Slashes Jobs in Grim Sign of Times

 PARIS — In the latest sign of hard times for Europe, French carmaker PSA Peugeot-Citroen says it will slash¹ about 8,000 jobs and close an assembly plant.

French unions are furious at Peugeot's announcement, calling it a "declaration of war" and an "earthquake."Speaking on French radio, union member Jean-Pierre Mercier accused Peugeot of looking out only for its financial interests. Explaining that workers like himself have been bracing³ for the cuts for months, he accused the car manufacturer of lying by failing to announce layoffs⁵ sooner.

The downsizing is also a blow to the newly elected Socialist⁶ government, which has promised pro-growth measures for France's ailing⁴ economy. But the carmaking giant is a major employer here, and fears of a ripple⁷ effect have spread.

In an interview on France's Europe 1 radio, Social Affairs Minister Marisol Touraine called the job cuts unacceptable and noted⁸ Peugeot had received several billion dollars of government aid. The government is studying ways to support affected⁹ workers.

The carmaker says it will close its Aulnay assembly plant near Paris, which employs more than 3,000 people. It will also cut about a quarter of its workforce¹⁰ at a second factory, in the northwestern city of Rennes.

Peugeot says it will try to find other jobs for about half of its affected employees.

Chief Executive Philippe Varin says the crisis affecting its European car business leaves the company with limited options, and that he understands the concerns of Peugeot workers, promising¹¹ that nobody would be left by the wayside.

Peugeot reported a loss for the first half of the year, with sales of its small cars hardest hit. It says it needs to become leaner and more efficient to adjust to a shrinking European market.

The job cuts are the latest bout² of grim economic news for Europe. A report out this week by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development finds unemployment rising across the 17-nation eurozone. In France, it topped 10 percent in May - up from just 7.5 percent in 2008.

In neighboring Spain, where the eurozone crisis has struck hard, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has announced more austerity measures, despite growing popular protests. In France, the auditing¹² agency says the government must find about $12.5 billion in additional revenue or make more budget cuts to meet its deficit¹³ target this year.

1 slash   

vi.大幅度削减；vt.猛砍，尖锐抨击，大幅减少；n.猛砍，斜线，长切口，衣衩

参考例句：

• The shop plans to slash fur prices after Spring Festival.该店计划在春节之后把皮货降价。
• Don't slash your horse in that cruel way.不要那样残忍地鞭打你的马。

2 bout   

n.侵袭，发作；一次(阵，回)；拳击等比赛

参考例句：

• I was suffering with a bout of nerves.我感到一阵紧张。
• That bout of pneumonia enfeebled her.那次肺炎的发作使她虚弱了。

3 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

4 ailing   

v.生病

参考例句：

• They discussed the problems ailing the steel industry. 他们讨论了困扰钢铁工业的问题。
• She looked after her ailing father. 她照顾有病的父亲。

5 layoffs   

临时解雇( layoff的名词复数 )； 停工，停止活动

参考例句：

• Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
• Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌

6 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

7 ripple   

n.涟波，涟漪，波纹，粗钢梳；vt.使...起涟漪，使起波纹； vi.呈波浪状，起伏前进

参考例句：

• The pebble made a ripple on the surface of the lake.石子在湖面上激起一个涟漪。
• The small ripple split upon the beach.小小的涟漪卷来，碎在沙滩上。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

10 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

11 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

12 auditing   

n.审计，查账，决算

参考例句：

• Auditing standards are the rules governing how an audit is performed.收支检查标准是规则统治一个稽核如何被运行。
• The auditing services market is dominated by a few large accounting firms.审计服务市场被几家大型会计公司独占了。

13 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。