The Law On Minimum Pay & Dealing With Your Office Emails - IELTS Reading Answers & Explanations
From Cambridge IELTS 07 General Training Reading Test 2 · Part 2 · Questions 15–27
Reading Passage
Read the text below and answer Questions 15–27.
The law on minimum pay
Who is entitled to minimum pay?
Nearly all workers aged 16 years and over, including part-time workers, are entitled to the National Minimum Wage. Amongst those to whom it does not apply are those engaged in unpaid work and family members employed by the family business.
What is the minimum wage that I am entitled to?
The National Wage Act specifies the minimum rates of pay applicable nationwide. Since 1 October 2007, the adult rate for workers aged 22 and over has been £5.25 per hour. The development rate for 18–21 year olds and for workers getting training in the first 6 months of a job is £4.60 per hour. The rate for 16–17 year olds starts at £3.40 an hour. There are special provisions for some workers, for example those whose job includes accommodation. Pay means gross pay and includes any items paid through the payroll such as overtime, bonus payments, commission and tips and gratuities.
I believe I'm being paid below the National Minimum Wage Rate. How can I complain?
If you are being paid less than this, there are various steps you can take:
- If you feel able, you should talk directly with your employer. This is a clear legal right, and employers can be fined for not paying the NMW.
- If you are a trade union member, you should call in the union.
- If neither of these is appropriate then you can email via the Revenue and Customs website or call their helpline for advice.
You have the legal right to inspect your employer's pay records if you believe, on reasonable grounds, that you are being paid less than the NMW. Your employer is required to produce the records within 14 days, and must make them available at your place of work or at some other reasonable place. If your employer fails to produce the records, you may take the matter to an employment tribunal. You must make your complaint within three months of the ending of the 14-day notice period.
______________
Read the text below and answer Questions 22–27.
Dealing with your office emails
Email has completely changed the way we work today. It offers many benefits and, if used well, can be an excellent tool for improving your own efficiency. Managed badly, though, email can be a waste of valuable time. Statistics indicate that office workers need to wade through an average of more than 30 emails a day. Despite your best efforts, unsolicited email or spam can clutter up the most organised inbox and infect your computer system with viruses. Here we give you guidance on protecting yourself.
Prioritising incoming messages
If you are regularly faced with a large volume of incoming messages, you need to prioritise your inbox to identify which emails are really important. If it is obvious spam, it can be deleted without reading. Then follow these steps for each email:
- Check who the email is from. Were you expecting or hoping to hear from the sender? How quickly do they expect you to respond?
- Check what the email is about. Is the subject urgent? Is it about an issue that falls within your sphere of responsibility, or should it just be forwarded to someone else?
- Has the email been in your inbox for long? Check the message time.
An initial scan like this can help you identify the emails that require your prompt attention. The others can be kept for reading at a more convenient time.
Replying in stages
Having prioritised your emails, you can answer them in stages, first with a brief acknowledgement and then a more detailed follow-up. This is particularly advisable when dealing with complicated matters where you don't want to give a rushed answer. If you decide to do this, tell the recipient a definite date when you'll be able to get back to him or her and try to keep to this wherever possible.
Some emails are uncomplicated and only require a brief, one line answer, so it's a good idea to reply to these immediately. For example, if all you need to say is, 'Yes, I can make the 10.00 meeting', or 'Thanks, that's just the information I needed', do it. If you are unable to reply there and then or choose not to, let the sender know that you've received the message and will be in touch as soon as possible.
Questions
Questions 15–21 Sentence Completion
Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the text for each answer.
- The law on minimum pay doesn't cover you if you are working in your 15 or if you are a volunteer.
- You may be paid under £5 an hour if you are receiving 16 at the start of a job.
- There are different rules for people who are provided with 17 with their jobs.
- If you earn extra money, for example for working longer hours or in tips, this counts as part of your wage when you receive it via 18.
- Anyone being paid below the National Minimum Wage should speak to their 19 if they can.
- According to the law, you can ask to look at your boss's 20.
- You have a period of 21 to complain if your boss does not co-operate within the specified period of time.
Questions 22–27 Flow Chart Completion
Complete the flow chart below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.
Dealing with emails
Delete 22
Sort email according to the:
- sender
- subject
- 23
Deal with emails that need your 24
|
If an email is easy to deal with, you should 25 |
If an email is complex, you can:
|
Answers & Explanations Summary
| # | Answer | Evidence | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q15 | family business | Amongst those to whom it does not apply are those engaged in unpaid work and family members employed by the family business | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that the minimum pay rules do not include people who work for no money or people who work for a company run by their family. Answer Explanation: The answer "family business" is a company that is owned or managed by members of your own family. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "family business" because the passage lists specific groups of people who do not have a legal right to the minimum wage. It states that the law "does not apply" (which means "doesn't cover") to people doing "unpaid work" (volunteers) and to "family members employed by the family business." The sentence in the task asks for the type of company where the law would not apply to you. |
| Q16 | training | The development rate for 18–21 year olds and for workers getting training in the first 6 months of a job is £4.60 per hour | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage states that workers who are learning how to do their work during their first six months of employment will be paid £4.60 each hour, which is under £5. Answer Explanation: The answer "training" means the period when a person learns the skills needed for their job. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "training" because the text mentions that workers who are learning their job skills during their first six months are paid a "development rate" of £4.60 per hour. This amount is less than £5, and the "first 6 months" matches the phrase "at the start of a job" mentioned in the question. |
| Q17 | accommodation | There are special provisions for some workers, for example those whose job includes accommodation | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage states that there are specific legal rules for employees if their job also gives them a place to stay. Answer Explanation: The answer is accommodation, which is a place where you live, such as a room, an apartment, or a house. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is accommodation because the passage mentions that there are "special provisions" (which means different rules) for workers whose "job includes accommodation" (meaning they are provided with a place to live). This matches the sentence in the task about people who are provided with something extra for their jobs. |
| Q18 | the payroll / payroll | Pay means gross pay and includes any items paid through the payroll such as overtime, bonus payments, commission and tips and gratuities | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage states that your total pay includes extra money like tips or pay for working more hours (overtime), as long as that money is given to you through the company's payment records (the payroll). Answer Explanation: The answer "(the) payroll" refers to the list or system a company uses to pay its workers. It is how your boss records how much money you should get. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "payroll" because the passage explains that your total pay includes extra money like "overtime" (working longer hours) and "tips" if these amounts are paid to you through the company's official payment system, which is called the payroll. |
| Q19 | employers / employer | If you feel able, you should talk directly with your employer | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage advises that if you are able to do so, you should have a conversation with the person you work for about your pay. Answer Explanation: The answer refers to the person or company that someone works for. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is derived from the first step recommended for workers who believe they are underpaid. The text suggests that if a worker feels capable, they should 'talk directly with' their boss or company. In the sentence, the phrase 'speak to' is a synonym for 'talk directly with', and 'if they can' corresponds to 'If you feel able'. |
| Q20 | pay records | You have the legal right to inspect your employer's pay records if you believe, on reasonable grounds, that you are being paid less than the NMW | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage says that workers are allowed by law to look at the lists or papers showing their pay if they have a good reason to think their pay is lower than it should be. Answer Explanation: The answer "pay records" means the documents or files that show how much money an employer pays to a worker. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "pay records" because the text explains that workers have a legal right to check these specific documents if they think they are not being paid enough. In the question, the word "boss's" matches the word "employer's" used in the passage, and "look at" matches the word "inspect." |
| Q21 | 3 months / three months | You must make your complaint within three months of the ending of the 14-day notice period | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage tells the worker that they have a set time—three months—to complain to an official group if their boss does not give them the paperwork they asked for. Answer Explanation: The answer is the time limit (three months) allowed for a worker to officially report a problem with their pay if their boss does not respond correctly. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is "three months" because the text explains the steps to take if an employer does not show the worker their pay documents. According to the section on complaining about pay, if the employer does not provide the records within two weeks, the worker can go to a tribunal, but they must do so within a time frame of three months. |
| Q22 | obvious spam / spam | If it is obvious spam, it can be deleted without reading | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage suggests that if you receive an email that is clearly junk, you do not need to read it and should just delete it. Answer Explanation: The answer refers to unwanted junk emails that can be thrown away immediately without being opened. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is '(obvious) spam' because the text explains how to manage a large number of emails by first removing unnecessary ones. In the 'Prioritising incoming messages' section, it specifically mentions that messages identified as 'obvious spam' should be 'deleted without reading', which corresponds to the 'Delete' step at the start of the flow chart. |
| Q23 | message time | Check the message time | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage states that looking at when an email was sent is one of the three steps you should take to help organize and rank your incoming messages. Answer Explanation: The answer "message time" refers to the specific hour and date that an email was sent or received in your inbox. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is located in the part of the text that explains how to organize and prioritize emails. It suggests looking at three main things to decide which emails are important. Following the mention of the sender and the subject, the text explicitly tells the reader to look at the time the message arrived to see how long it has been in the inbox. |
| Q24 | prompt attention | An initial scan like this can help you identify the emails that require your prompt attention | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that doing a quick look through your inbox helps you find the specific emails that you must act on right away. Answer Explanation: The answer means giving something your full focus immediately or very quickly. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is located in the section about prioritizing incoming messages. The flow chart follows the order of the text: first, you delete spam; next, you look at details like the sender, the subject, and the time; then, you use that information to find which messages need 'prompt attention.' This means you focus on the most important tasks first. The word 'prompt' is a key term meaning fast or without delay. |
| Q25 | reply immediately | Some emails are uncomplicated and only require a brief, one line answer, so it's a good idea to reply to these immediately | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage says that for simple emails that only need a short reply, it is best to send that reply right away. Answer Explanation: The answer means you should send an answer to a simple email as soon as you receive it. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is 'reply immediately' because the text explains how to handle emails that are not difficult. It uses the synonym 'uncomplicated' to describe an email that is easy to deal with and states that it is a 'good idea' to answer 'immediately' (which means right away). |
| Q26 | brief acknowledgement | Having prioritised your emails, you can answer them in stages, first with a brief acknowledgement and then a more detailed follow-up | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that after you decide which emails are important, you can reply in two parts. The first part is a quick message to say you got the email. Answer Explanation: The answer means a very short message you send to someone just to let them know that you have received their email. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the section about replying in stages. The text says that for 'complicated' or hard emails, you should not hurry to give a long answer. Instead, the first thing you should do is send a short note to confirm the email arrived. The text uses the phrase 'brief acknowledgement' to describe this first step. |
| Q27 | definite date / date | If you decide to do this, tell the recipient a definite date when you'll be able to get back to him or her and try to keep to this wherever possible | Excerpt/Passage Explanation: The passage explains that when you choose to answer a hard email in stages, you must tell the receiver a specific day you will contact them again and try to follow that plan. Answer Explanation: The answer means a specific day on the calendar when you will finish a task. Reason For Correctness: The correct answer is found in the section about replying to difficult emails in parts. The text suggests that if an email is not easy to answer quickly, you should tell the person exactly when you will send a full reply. The text uses the words "definite date" to describe this specific day. By giving a date, the other person knows when to expect your complete message. |