Kenichi Software: Security Guidelines For Staff & Is Everyone Entitled To Paid Holidays? - IELTS Reading Answers & Explanations
From Cambridge IELTS 08 General Training Reading Test 1 · Part 2 · Questions 15–27
Reading Passage
Read the text below and answer Questions 15-20.
Kenichi Software: security guidelines for staff
General
It is in everyone's interest to maintain a high level of security in the workplace. You should immediately challenge any person who appears to be on the premises without proper authorisation, or inform a senior member of staff about any odd or unusual activity.
Company Property
You are advised that it is within the company's legal rights to detain any person on the grounds that they may be involved in the unauthorised removal of company property. The company reserves the right to search staff members leaving or entering the premises and to inspect any article or motor vehicle on company property. It is a condition of employment that you submit to such action if requested.
It is in your own interest to ensure that you have proper authority before removing any item of company property from a company building. Any member found removing company property from the building without proper authority will be subject to disciplinary action.
Identity Badges
You will be issued with an identity badge, which should be worn at all times when you are on company premises. The purpose of these badges is to safeguard our security. Badges are issued by Human Resources, and contractors and people visiting the company on a one-off basis are also obliged to wear them.
Confidential Matters
In the course of your work you may have access to information relating to the company's business, or that of a supplier or customer. Such material, even where it appears comparatively trivial, can have a serious effect on the company, supplier or customer if it falls into the wrong hands. It is, therefore, essential that you should at all times be aware of the serious view the company would take of disclosure of such material to outsiders.
You must treat as confidential all information, data, specifications, drawings and all documents relating to the company's business and/or its trading activities, and not divulge, use, or employ them except in the company's service. Before you leave the company, you must hand over to your manager all private notes relevant to the company's business, activities, prices, accounts, costs etc. Legal proceedings may be initiated for any misuse or unauthorised disclosure of such confidential information, whether during employment or afterwards.
______________
Read the text below and answer Questions 21-27.
Is Everyone Entitled To Paid Holidays?
The Working Time Regulations (WTRs) introduced a new right to paid holidays for most workers. However, some workers were not covered when the WTRs came into force in October 1998. Since the regulations were amended, with effect from 1 August 2003, the majority of these workers have been entitled to paid holidays, and since 1 August 2004 the regulations have also applied to junior doctors.
Workers who qualify are entitled to no fewer than four weeks of paid holiday a year, and public holidays (normally eight days in England and Wales) count towards this. However, workers and employers can agree longer holidays.
For the first year of work, special accrual rules apply. For each month of employment, workers are entitled to one twelfth of the annual holiday. After the first year of employment, you can take your holiday entitlement at any time, with your employer's approval.
Before taking holidays, you must give your employer notice of at least twice the length of the holiday you want to take: for instance, to take a five-day holiday, you must give at least ten days' notice. If your employer does not want you to take that holiday, they can give you counter-notice equal to the holiday – for example, five days' notice not to take a five-day holiday.
If the employer wants you to take holiday at a given time, e.g. when there is a shutdown at the same time every year, they must give you notice of at least twice the length of the holiday. There is no right for the worker to take that holiday at a different time.
Holiday cannot be carried over to the next year, unless your contract of employment allows this to happen. Nor can you be paid in lieu of your holiday. However, when you leave the job, you are entitled to receive payment for any outstanding holiday, provided your contract specifically allows for this.
It may be that your contract gives you better rights, or your holiday rights might be specified in a collective agreement. Your union representative can advise you on this.
Questions
Questions 15–20 Sentence Completion
Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.
- If you see anything suspicious, you should report it to a 15 employee.
- If the company wants to stop you and 16 you, you have to agree to it.
- If you take things belonging to the company without permission, you will face 17 .
- Staff, 18 and visitors must all wear a badge on company premises.
- You must not pass on confidential information to 19 .
- If you leave the company, you have to hand in any 20 you have made on matters concerning the company.
Questions 21–27 Short Answers
Answer the questions below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the text for each answer.
Answers & Explanations Summary
| # | Answer | Evidence | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q15 | senior | inform a senior member of staff about any odd or unusual activity | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage tells workers that if they see something strange or different from normal, they should tell a worker who is in a higher position than them. Answer Explanation: The answer "senior" refers to a person who has a higher position, more experience, or more authority in a company. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "senior" because the passage instructs workers to talk to a "senior member of staff" if they notice anything strange. In the sentence provided in the question, "anything suspicious" means the same thing as "odd or unusual activity," and an "employee" matches the meaning of a "member of staff." |
| Q16 | to search / search | The company reserves the right to search staff members leaving or entering the premises and to inspect any article or motor vehicle on company property. It is a condition of employment that you submit to such action if requested | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage says the company can check people and their cars. It also says that because you work there, you must agree and let them do it if they ask. Answer Explanation: The answer means that the company has the right to look through your body or your things to see if you are hiding something. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "search" because the text explains that the company has the legal right to stop people (detain them) and look through their belongings or check them as they move in or out of the building. The text states that employees must follow this rule and allow the company to do this as part of their job agreement. |
| Q17 | disciplinary action | Any member found removing company property from the building without proper authority will be subject to disciplinary action | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage says that any worker who is caught taking things out of the office without permission will receive a formal punishment from the company. Answer Explanation: The answer means a punishment or a formal process that a person faces at work if they break the rules. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the section about Company Property. The text states that if a staff member takes any item belonging to the business out of the building without having the right permission (proper authority), they will face punishment. The phrase used in the text to describe this punishment is disciplinary action. |
| Q18 | contractors | Badges are issued by Human Resources, and contractors and people visiting the company on a one-off basis are also obliged to wear them | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that the Human Resources department gives out identification badges and that outside workers (contractors) and visitors of the company are required to wear them. Answer Explanation: The answer means people who are hired by the company to do a specific job for a certain amount of time, rather than being permanent staff. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "contractors" because the section titled 'Identity Badges' explains who must wear a badge while on company property. It mentions that badges are for security and lists three specific groups: staff (the 'you' addressed in the text), 'contractors', and 'people visiting the company' (visitors). Because 'staff' and 'visitors' are already mentioned in the question, 'contractors' is the missing word. |
| Q19 | outsiders | It is, therefore, essential that you should at all times be aware of the serious view the company would take of disclosure of such material to outsiders | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage states that it is very important for employees to know that the company will have a very negative reaction if private business information is given to people outside the organization. Answer Explanation: The answer refers to people who do not work for the company and do not belong to the business group. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is supported by the text's warning about sharing secret details. It mentions that the company considers it a very serious matter if someone gives private information to people who are not part of the business. The word 'disclosure' means making something known, and in this context, it refers to telling secrets to people on the outside. |
| Q20 | private notes / notes | Before you leave the company, you must hand over to your manager all private notes relevant to the company's business, activities, prices, accounts, costs etc | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that before an employee leaves their job at the company, they must give all their personal written records about the business to their manager. Answer Explanation: The answer is 'private notes' or simply 'notes.' These are personal writings or records an employee has created about the business. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the 'Confidential Matters' section of the text. It states that when a person stops working for the company, they are required to give their manager all the personal writings they made regarding the company's affairs. The sentence in the task uses the phrase 'hand in,' which matches the meaning of 'hand over' used in the text. The term 'private notes' fits the blank perfectly to show what must be returned. |
| Q21 | in 2003 / 2003 | Since the regulations were amended, with effect from 1 August 2003, the majority of these workers have been entitled to paid holidays, and since 1 August 2004 the regulations have also applied to junior doctors | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage says that when the rules were changed on August 1, 2003, most of the workers who were left out before were finally allowed to have paid holidays. Answer Explanation: The answer is the year when the rules were changed to give most workers the right to have paid time off. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 2003 because the text mentions that while some workers were not included when the rules (WTRs) first started in 1998, the rules were later amended (changed). Starting from August 1, 2003, the majority (most) of those workers became entitled (given the right) to paid holidays. |
| Q22 | 4 weeks a year / 4 weeks | Workers who qualify are entitled to no fewer than four weeks of paid holiday a year, and public holidays (normally eight days in England and Wales) count towards this | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage states that workers must receive at least four weeks of paid holiday every year, which is the minimum amount allowed. Answer Explanation: The answer means that the smallest amount of paid vacation time a worker can get in one year is four weeks. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the section explaining holiday rights. The text uses the phrase 'no fewer than', which is a synonym for 'minimum'. It states that workers are 'entitled to', or have a right to receive, this amount of paid time off. |
| Q23 | one twelfth | For each month of employment, workers are entitled to one twelfth of the annual holiday | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that when you start a new job, you earn a small part of your yearly holiday time each month, which is exactly one-twelfth of the total. Answer Explanation: The answer means that in the first year of a job, a person gets 1/12 of their yearly vacation time for every month they work. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the section about holiday time during the first year of a job. The text explains that there are specific 'accrual rules' (rules for how much you earn over time). It clearly states that for every 'month of employment', a worker is 'entitled' (has the right) to 'one twelfth' of their 'annual holiday' (the total vacation for the whole year). |
| Q24 | equal counter-notice / counter-notice | If your employer does not want you to take that holiday, they can give you counter-notice equal to the holiday – for example, five days' notice not to take a five-day holiday | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage says that if a boss wants to stop a worker from taking a vacation, they must give the worker a 'counter-notice' that is the same length as the vacation itself. Answer Explanation: The answer means a special written message called a 'counter-notice' that an employer uses to say 'no' to a worker's vacation request. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is based on the section about holiday rules. The passage explains that if a boss does not want an employee to go on vacation after it has been requested, they must provide a document known as a 'counter-notice'. This notice must be given for a period of time that is 'equal' to the amount of holiday time being requested. |
| Q25 | the annual shutdown / the shutdown / annual shutdown / shutdown / a shutdown | If the employer wants you to take holiday at a given time, e.g. when there is a shutdown at the same time every year, they must give you notice of at least twice the length of the holiday | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage says that if a company closes for a regular yearly break (called a shutdown), the boss can ask the workers to take their holidays during that specific time. Answer Explanation: The answer means that an employee might have to go on holiday because the business closes for a period of time. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the section about holiday timing. The text explains that an employer can require workers to take their holiday at a 'given time'. It provides a 'shutdown' as a specific example of when this might happen, meaning the business closes its doors for a scheduled period. |
| Q26 | a holiday payment / a payment / holiday payment / payment / outstanding holiday payment | when you leave the job, you are entitled to receive payment for any outstanding holiday, provided your contract specifically allows for this | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that when a worker quits or loses their job, they can receive money for the vacation days they still haven't used, as long as their work contract allows it. Answer Explanation: The answer means that when you quit or finish working at a company, you should get money for the vacation days you have left and did not use. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the section about holiday rules. The text mentions that if you 'leave the job,' you have the right to get 'payment' for any 'outstanding holiday' (which means the vacation days you still have left) if your contract says so. |
| Q27 | a collective agreement / collective agreement | It may be that your contract gives you better rights, or your holiday rights might be specified in a collective agreement | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that your rules for time off (holidays) could be in your common work paper (contract) or in another group document called a collective agreement. Answer Explanation: The answer refers to a special deal made between a boss and a group of workers (like a union) that explains the rules for their jobs. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'collective agreement' because the text explains that while rules are usually in a contract, holiday rights can also be found in a 'collective agreement.' The word 'specified' in the text means 'clearly written' or 'set out.' |