题目
Confronted with the worst job market in decades, many college graduates who expected to land paid jobs are turning to unpaid internships to try to get a foot in an employer's door. Melissa Reyes, who graduated from Marist College with a degree in Fashion Merchandising last May, applied for a dozen jobs to no avail. She was thrilled, however, to land an internship with a fashion house in Manhattan.“They talked about what an excellent and educational internship program this would be,"she said. But Ms. Reyes soon soured on the experience. She often worked from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., five days a week."They had me running out to buy them lunch," she said.“They had me cleaning out the closets, emptying out the past season's items.”Asked about her complaints, the fashion firm said,"We are very proud of our internship program, and we take all concerns of this kind very seriously." Although many internships provide valuable experience, some unpaid interns complain that they do menial(无需技术的) work and learn little, raising questions about whether these positions violate federal rules governing such programs. On the other hand, interns say they often have no good alternatives. As a job report showed, job growth was weak, and the unemployment rate for 20-to 24-year-olds was 13.2 percent in April. The Labor Department says that if employers do not want to pay their interns, the internships must resemble vocational education, the interns must work under close supervision, they cannot be used as a substitute for regular employees, and their work cannot be of immediate benefit to the employer. But in practice, there is little to stop employers from exploiting interns. The Labor Department rarely cracks(制裁) down on offenders, saying that it has limited resources and that unpaid interns are loath to file complaints for fear of jeopardizing any future job search. No one keeps statistics on the number of college graduates taking unpaid internships, but there is widespread agreement that the number has significantly increased, not least because the jobless rate for college graduates aged 24 and under has risen to 9.4 percent, the highest level since the government began keeping records in 1985. “A few years ago you hardly heard about college graduates taking unpaid internships,"said a vice president at the Economic Policy Institute who has done several studies on interns.“But now I've even heard of people taking unpaid internships after graduating from Ivy League schools." 1 What does the author say about the unpaid internship in the first and second paragraphs? A It helps graduates apply for thrilling jobs. B It helps graduates to bargain about the salary. C It allows graduates to have meaningful programs. D It enables graduates to get better odds of being employed. 2 What does Melissa Reyes describe her internship like, according to the passage? A Serious and valuable. B Arduous but beneficial. C Educational and excellent. D Trivial with no skills required. 3 What are employers supposed to do, according to the passage? A Have interns work without supervision. B Get interns to work as regular employees. C Make interns'work benefit the company immediately. D Provide interns with something like vocational training. 4 Why are interns frequently suffering exploitation by employers? A It has become the“underlying rule”of society. B The law provides no measures to punish employers. C The government has no resources to deal with such cases. D Interns are reluctant to take official action as it may affect their future job prospect. 5 What do we learn about unpaid internships from the passage? A The quality of unpaid internships is good. B More graduates apply for unpaid internships. C Unpaid internships are an isolated phenomenon. D Unpaid internships are crucial for college graduates.
Confronted with the worst job market in decades, many college graduates who expected to land paid jobs are turning to unpaid internships to try to get a foot in an employer's door. Melissa Reyes, who graduated from Marist College with a degree in Fashion Merchandising last May, applied for a dozen jobs to no avail. She was thrilled, however, to land an internship with a fashion house in Manhattan.“They talked about what an excellent and educational internship program this would be,"she said. But Ms. Reyes soon soured on the experience. She often worked from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., five days a week."They had me running out to buy them lunch," she said.“They had me cleaning out the closets, emptying out the past season's items.”Asked about her complaints, the fashion firm said,"We are very proud of our internship program, and we take all concerns of this kind very seriously." Although many internships provide valuable experience, some unpaid interns complain that they do menial(无需技术的) work and learn little, raising questions about whether these positions violate federal rules governing such programs. On the other hand, interns say they often have no good alternatives. As a job report showed, job growth was weak, and the unemployment rate for 20-to 24-year-olds was 13.2 percent in April. The Labor Department says that if employers do not want to pay their interns, the internships must resemble vocational education, the interns must work under close supervision, they cannot be used as a substitute for regular employees, and their work cannot be of immediate benefit to the employer. But in practice, there is little to stop employers from exploiting interns. The Labor Department rarely cracks(制裁) down on offenders, saying that it has limited resources and that unpaid interns are loath to file complaints for fear of jeopardizing any future job search. No one keeps statistics on the number of college graduates taking unpaid internships, but there is widespread agreement that the number has significantly increased, not least because the jobless rate for college graduates aged 24 and under has risen to 9.4 percent, the highest level since the government began keeping records in 1985. “A few years ago you hardly heard about college graduates taking unpaid internships,"said a vice president at the Economic Policy Institute who has done several studies on interns.“But now I've even heard of people taking unpaid internships after graduating from Ivy League schools." 1 What does the author say about the unpaid internship in the first and second paragraphs? A It helps graduates apply for thrilling jobs. B It helps graduates to bargain about the salary. C It allows graduates to have meaningful programs. D It enables graduates to get better odds of being employed. 2 What does Melissa Reyes describe her internship like, according to the passage? A Serious and valuable. B Arduous but beneficial. C Educational and excellent. D Trivial with no skills required. 3 What are employers supposed to do, according to the passage? A Have interns work without supervision. B Get interns to work as regular employees. C Make interns'work benefit the company immediately. D Provide interns with something like vocational training. 4 Why are interns frequently suffering exploitation by employers? A It has become the“underlying rule”of society. B The law provides no measures to punish employers. C The government has no resources to deal with such cases. D Interns are reluctant to take official action as it may affect their future job prospect. 5 What do we learn about unpaid internships from the passage? A The quality of unpaid internships is good. B More graduates apply for unpaid internships. C Unpaid internships are an isolated phenomenon. D Unpaid internships are crucial for college graduates.
题目解答
答案
详细解析及答案
1. 作者在第一和第二段中对无薪实习说了什么?
选项分析:
- A. 它帮助毕业生申请令人兴奋的工作。(不符合文意,文中没有提到无薪实习帮助毕业生申请令人兴奋的工作。)
- B. 它帮助毕业生讨价还价关于薪水。(不符合文意,文中没有提到无薪实习帮助毕业生讨价还价关于薪水。)
- C. 它允许毕业生参加有意义的项目。(不符合文意,文中提到一些无薪实习是无意义的、无需技术的工作。)
- D. 它使毕业生有更高的被雇用的机会。(符合文意,文中提到许多毕业生通过无薪实习来尝试进入雇主的门,增加被雇用的机会。)
答案:D
解析: 文中提到,面对几十年来最糟糕的就业市场,许多大学毕业生为了增加被雇用的机会,选择无薪实习。这表明无薪实习使毕业生有更高的被雇用的机会。
2. 根据文章,Melissa Reyes 如何描述她的实习经历?
选项分析:
- A. 严肃且有价值。(不符合文意,Melissa Reyes 对她的实习经历感到失望。)
- B. 艰苦但有益。(不符合文意,Melissa Reyes 认为她的实习工作是无意义的。)
- C. 有教育意义且优秀。(不符合文意,Melissa Reyes 最初认为实习会很有教育意义,但后来感到失望。)
- D. 无关紧要且无需技术。(符合文意,Melissa Reyes 描述她的实习工作包括买午餐、清理衣柜等无需技术的工作。)
答案:D
解析: 文中提到,Melissa Reyes 最初对实习充满期待,但后来发现她的工作包括买午餐、清理衣柜等无需技术的工作,这使她对实习经历感到失望。
3. 根据文章,雇主应该做什么?
选项分析:
- A. 让实习生在没有监督的情况下工作。(不符合文意,文中提到实习生必须在密切监督下工作。)
- B. 让实习生作为正式员工工作。(不符合文意,文中提到实习生不能替代正式员工。)
- C. 让实习生的工作立即对公 司有益。(不符合文意,文中提到实习生的工作不能立即对雇主有益。)
- D. 为实习生提供类似职业培训的内容。(符合文意,文中提到无薪实习必须类似于职业培训。)
答案:D
解析: 文中提到,根据劳动部门的规定,如果雇主不想支付实习生工资,实习必须类似于职业培训,实习生必须在密切监督下工作,不能替代正式员工,且他们的工作不能立即对雇主有益。
4. 为什么实习生经常遭受雇主的剥削?
选项分析:
- A. 这已成为社会的“潜规则”。(不符合文意,文中没有提到这是社会的潜规则。)
- B. 法律没有措施惩罚雇主。(不符合文意,文中提到法律有规定,但执行不力。)
- C. 政府没有资源处理此类案件。(部分符合文意,文中提到劳动部门资源有限。)
- D. 实习生不愿意采取官方行动,因为这可能影响他们的未来就业前景。(符合文意,文中提到实习生不愿投诉,因为担心影响未来就业。)
答案:D
解析: 文中提到,劳动部门很少对违规雇主进行制裁,因为资源有限,且实习生不愿投诉,担心影响未来就业前景。
5. 从文章中我们对无薪实习了解到了什么?
选项分析:
- A. 无薪实习的质量很好。(不符合文意,文中提到一些无薪实习是无意义的、无需技术的工作。)
- B. 更多毕业生申请无薪实习。(符合文意,文中提到无薪实习的数量显著增加。)
- C. 无薪实习是一个孤立的现象。(不符合文意,文中提到无薪实习现象普遍。)
- D. 无薪实习对大学毕业生至关重要。(部分符合文意,但文中没有明确说无薪实习对大学毕业生至关重要。)
答案:B
解析: 文中提到,虽然没有统计数据,但普遍认为无薪实习的数量显著增加,因为年轻人的失业率上升,许多毕业生为了增加被雇用的机会选择无薪实习。