N8 : Eighth lesson S00-TITLE : Employment (Extract from a UK government report on the labour market) S01 : Employment, both full-time and part-time, has been increasing steadily for several decades. S02 : The latest official data show that, on a seasonally adjusted basis, S03 : thirty million people aged sixteen and over were economically active, up some 2.5 per cent from a year ago. S04 : The number of people working flexible time has risen by more than one million. S05 : Last year, for example, it rose by seven hundred thousand -, S06 : but as a proportion of all those in employment, it has remained stable for three years. S07 : More importantly, the redundancy rate has been falling for the last three years. S08 : The ratio of the number of redundancies to the number of employees is at an all-time low. S09 : The number of workless households was around three million, a hundred thousand fewer than last year. S10 : One of the most striking trends is the higher participation rate for women in the workforce. S11 : Among the reasons for this is that more women delay having children until their thirties S12 : and, compared with the previous generation, are more likely to return to work afterwards. S13 : In terms of working patterns, the majority of those in employment are full-time workers, S14 : although there has also been a slight increase in the number of self-employed and home-based workers. S15 : It should be noted that fixed-term employees have equal rights in terms of pay, pensions, holidays and sick pay. S16 : Gross weekly earnings have remained stable, despite last year's hike in the statutory minimum wage. S17 : However, there has also been a rise in fringe benefits, including company cars, subsidised meals and childcare centres. S18 : More importantly, leisure time has also increased in relation to working hours. S19 : In all, it would appear that the government's efforts to achieve a healthy work-life balance have paid dividends. T00-TRANSLATE : Exercise: Translate T01 : On a seasonally adjusted basis, unemployment has been falling steadily for a decade. T02 : Hundreds of people were made redundant when the factory closed. T03 : Some youngsters lack the support they need to change their behaviour patterns. T04 : Interestingly, you can travel free if you're over sixty. T05 : The new employment strategy has paid dividends.