政府鼓励一周工作4.5天

 　　The new proposal released by the State Council is calling on employers to let their employees start their time off during the summer a few hours early on Friday afternoons, as long as conditions permit.

　　Word of the proposal is being applauded by some.

　　"For those working in high-pressure situations, it will be good for their health, even if a weekend is only extended by less than a day."

　　"People can use this extra time either to travel or to meet with their parents. It surely will bring some benefits."

　　The proposal is among a slew¹ of new measures aimed at promoting tourism-related investment and consumption.

　　政府鼓励一周工作4.5天

　　Travel industry observers are suggesting the new proposals could help ease nationwide tourist congestion² during the national holidays, or so-called Golden Weeks.

　　Nanning-based Travel service manager Zhang Yuanyuan says her company has begun to design tourism packages which will fit into a window less than 3-days.

　　"We predict that short-distance trips around cities would be preferred by our customers, while self-guided and driving tours are also expected to become more popular."

　　However, not everyone is sure the new program will work.

　　"The changes won't make any difference, because the workload³ before and after the trip will remain same. Those who take off early will just have to make up the work at a different time."

　　"It won't change anything for the people like me who are not working for government institutions. My vacation times are totally decided⁴ on by my boss."

　　A survey by the Ministry⁵ of Human Resources shows only around half of Chinese employees actually use their paid vacations.

　　The same analysis shows party and government organizations, state-owned enterprises and foreign-funded companies are much better at honoring their requirement for paid vacation than private firms.

　　Xu Guangjian, a professor of public administration studies with Renmin University, says there are numerous reasons for this.

　　"Employers are worried about costs. Local local governments are often unwilling⁶ to give their employees the time off. And many employees tend to just give up their vacations, as they will only make the basic salary during their time off, which is often really low."

　　As part of the new document released this week by the State Council, more tourism infrastructure⁷ is going to be built before 2020, including cruise ship ports and parks for recreational vehicles.

　　Steps are also being taken to make existing tourism facilities better, including public toilets at tourist attractions.

　　More private investment is also being encouraged in the tourism industry.

　　For CRI, I'm Yu Yang.

1 slew   

v.（使）旋转；n.大量，许多

参考例句：

• He slewed the car against the side of the building.他的车滑到了大楼的一侧，抵住了。
• They dealt with a slew of other issues.他们处理了大量的其他问题。

2 congestion   

n.阻塞，消化不良

参考例句：

• The congestion in the city gets even worse during the summer.夏天城市交通阻塞尤为严重。
• Parking near the school causes severe traffic congestion.在学校附近泊车会引起严重的交通堵塞。

3 workload   

n.作业量，工作量

参考例句：

• An assistant one day a week would ease my workload.每周有一天配一个助手就会减轻我的工作负担。
• He's always grousing about the workload.他总是抱怨工作量大。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

6 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

7 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。