【一起听英语】年轻人就职危机

人口越来越多，优秀人才也越来越多，应聘工作变得越来越难，竞争压力越来越大.......

This is not a word for word transcript¹.

Rob: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English. I'm Rob and with me today is Natalie.

Natalie: Hi Rob.

Rob: Today we are going to talk about a big challenge that young people are facing.

This is the lack of jobs. This week the International Labour Organisation² (or

ILO, as it's known) has said that youth unemployment around the world

remains³ at a crisis level!

Natalie: Crisis is a strong word!

Rob: It is and it's not used lightly. The report looked at young people between the

ages of 15 and 24 and found out that around 75 million of them are out of

work!

Natalie: That's really sad news. But the economy hasn't been helping⁴ much.

Rob: That's right and we are going to talk about in just a moment but let's start

with our usual quiz question. So are you ready Natalie? Which one of these

unusual jobs is NOT a real one?

a) A vibration⁵ consultant⁶.

b) A trifle analyst⁷.

c) A raven⁸ master.

Natalie: It must be a) a vibration consultant. What would this person do, check if a

party had a good "vibe", a good atmosphere?

Rob: Maybe but then again maybe not.

Natalie: Well I'm keen to know but I'll have to wait until the end of the programme.

Rob: You will. Right. Now, let's get back to the hard realities of being young and

looking for a job. In the report by BBC's Imogen Foulkes, the reporter uses a

phrase that describes a depressing situation.

BBC correspondent Imogen Foulkes:

The ILO’s report paints a bleak⁹ picture of young people losing hope and becoming

increasingly detached from the world of work. Almost 75 million people between the ages of

15 and 24 are unemployed¹⁰ worldwide, and the ILO’s new report predicts no improvement

before 2016 at the earliest.

 

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Natalie: She said that the report paints a bleak picture – bleak often describes an area

that is cold, empty and miserable¹¹.

Rob: The economic crisis is really causing a lot of long-term problems. Young

people simply aren't seeing any new job opportunities and the forecast is not

good.

Natalie: The forecast, the things experts predict about trends in the future.

Rob: Let's hear what the International Labour Organisation chief economist¹² thinks

about the situation. What do you think the word entrenched¹³ might mean?

BBC correspondent Imogen Foulkes:

For young people in particular, says the ILO’s chief economist Ekkehard Ernst, these years

without work will be damaging: "We have lost the jobs and they are not coming back. Our

forecast shows that we are not getting these jobs over the next four or five years. So this

means that this crisis really becomes entrenched on the labour market, and that means that

we also see these young people losing their skills."

Rob: So the forecast is that there will be not enough jobs over the next four or five

years…

Natalie: And the crisis is becoming entrenched on the labour market that means that it

is to be fixed¹⁴ or rooted in the same position – the position of lack of work for

young people.

Rob: In the next part of the report, listen to the word used to describe being left to

one side – a position that many people might find themselves in:

BBC correspondent Imogen Foulkes:

The ILO already has evidence that many young people are simply dropping out. Neither in

work, nor in education, they've no skills and are becoming increasingly marginalised. Others

are growing bitter that the years spent in higher education have brought no career. Instead,

the ILO says, many young graduates are being forced to take part time unskilled jobs.

Rob: So they are dropping out. They are not doing anything. They are excluded

from the jobs market or from education. They are not learning new things and

that's how they end up more and more marginalised.

Natalie: To be marginalised is to be left to one side and forgotten about.

Rob: Well, faced with no choice, many young people have to accept part-time jobs,

or jobs that are low-skilled. Some people call these temporary jobs – to work

on a temporary job is sometimes called temping. The ILO is urging

governments to make job creation a priority. They also suggest offering tax

breaks to companies who employ young people and programmes of work that

encourage training and learning – these are sometimes called apprenticeships.

Natalie: Young people can learn English to help them build their skills! 

6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2012

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Rob: What a good idea! And let's end on a more positive note, shall we, with our

quiz question.

Natalie: Yes! You asked me: Which of these unusual jobs is NOT a real one? I don't

remember all the options…

Rob: I've got to remind you. They were:

a) A vibration consultant.

b) A trifle analyst.

c) A raven master.

Natalie: And I said a) a vibration consultant, I think.

Rob: Why did you say that? You were wrong! You didn't pay attention to the

options presented to you, you just had ears for the first one, didn't you!

Actually, a vibration consultant is someone who advises on vibration and noise

problems for construction companies or manufacturers. A raven master is

England's one and only custodian¹⁶ of the Tower of London's ravens¹⁷. So what

doesn't quite exist is a trifle analyst! A trifle is a dessert of course, which I

love, and you're not supposed to analyse it. You should just really eat it!

Natalie: Yes, of course! But I'm on a diet, Rob. I've been avoiding even thinking about

trifles!

Rob: Really, I'll have some more then, thanks. To those of you keen on learning

English, here are today's words and expressions again.

Natalie: a bleak picture

a forecast

entrenched

 to drop out

 marginalised

 temping, a temporary job

 an apprenticeship¹⁵

Rob: Thanks, Natalie. Hopefully you've enjoyed today's programme. Please do join

us again for more 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English very soon! Bye!

Natalie: Bye!

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

5 vibration   

n.颤动，振动；摆动

参考例句：

• There is so much vibration on a ship that one cannot write.船上的震动大得使人无法书写。
• The vibration of the window woke me up.窗子的震动把我惊醒了。

6 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

7 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

8 raven   

n.渡鸟，乌鸦；adj.乌亮的

参考例句：

• We know the raven will never leave the man's room.我们知道了乌鸦再也不会离开那个男人的房间。
• Her charming face was framed with raven hair.她迷人的脸上垂落着乌亮的黑发。

9 bleak   

adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的

参考例句：

• They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。
• The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

10 unemployed   

adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的

参考例句：

• There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
• The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。

11 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

12 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

13 entrenched   

adj.确立的，不容易改的(风俗习惯)

参考例句：

• Television seems to be firmly entrenched as the number one medium for national advertising.电视看来要在全国广告媒介中牢固地占据头等位置。
• If the enemy dares to attack us in these entrenched positions,we will make short work of them.如果敌人胆敢进攻我们固守的阵地，我们就消灭他们。

14 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

15 apprenticeship   

n.学徒身份；学徒期

参考例句：

• She was in the second year of her apprenticeship as a carpenter. 她当木工学徒已是第二年了。
• He served his apprenticeship with Bob. 他跟鲍勃当学徒。

16 custodian   

n.保管人，监护人；公共建筑看守

参考例句：

• Benitez believes his custodian is among the top five in world football.贝尼特斯坚信他的门将是当今足坛最出色的五人之一。
• When his father died his uncle became his legal custodian.他父亲死后，他叔叔成了他的法定监护人。

17 ravens   

n.低质煤；渡鸦( raven的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Wheresoever the carcase is,there will the ravens be gathered together. 哪里有死尸，哪里就有乌鸦麇集。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A couple of ravens croaked above our boat. 两只乌鸦在我们小船的上空嘎嘎叫着。 来自辞典例句