HUMAN RESOURCES

general vocabulary
Unit Word 0000 association 4: salary and wage
1. Rearrange these letters to make adjectives that can come before wage and salary. The first letter of
each word has been underlined.
balelevi ginilv cabis moinnla iuimmmn honymtl graevea alnuan eyyrla
2. Complete this paragraph with verbs from the box.
command cut dock draw earn
fall offer pay raise rise reduce
An employee can (a) ________ or (b) ________ a wage or salary. An employer can (c)________, (d)________,
(e)________, (f)________ or (g)________ salaries or wages. If an employee is persistently late or does
something wrong, the employer can (h)________ his wages. Wages and salaries can (i)________ or
(j)________. An experienced worker who is in great demand can (k)________ a high wage or salary from a
new employer.
3. Decide whether these statements are true or false:
(a) Changes made to wages are called wage adjustments.
(b) The basis on which an employee is paid is called a wage formation.
(c) A wage-price spiral occurs when prices fall, and so wages fall as well.
(d) The act of keeping increases in wages under control is called a wage restraint.
(e) A wage freeze is a period during which a company doesn't pay any wages.
(f) The differences in wages between employees in similar types of jobs are called wage differences.
(g) A wages floor is the department in a company which is responsible for paying the employees
(h) A financial benefit offered as a reward to employees who perform very well is called a wage incentive.
4. Complete these dictionary definitions with words from the box.
bands ceiling cut deductions drift
expectations review structure
(a) Salary ________ refers to money which a company removes from salaries to pay to the government as
tax, National Insurance, etc.
(b) A salary ________ is the organisation of salaries in a company with different rates of pay for different
jobs.
(c) Salary ________ is a situation where an increase in pay is greater than that of officially negotiated rates.
(d) Salary ________ are the hopes of an employee that their salary will increase.
(e) A salary ________ is a re-examination by an employer of an employee's pay.
(f) A salary ________ is the highest level on a pay scale that an employee can achieve under his or her
contract.
g) Salary ________ are all the salaries at different levels in a company.
(h) A salary ________ is a sudden reduction in salary.
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© Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. For reference see Dictionary of Human Resources and Personnel Management (ISBN 0 7475 6623 2)