The Reading / Listening - Working from Home - Level 1

In 2023, the WHO said COVID-19 was no longer a health emergency. Today, many workers are still working from home. Amazon has decided to end this. It told its staff to return to a five-day week from January. Amazon said: "We're going to return to being in the office the way we were before Covid." It said staff could collaborate, brainstorm, and invent in the office. They could also teach and learn from one another better.

Some workers are unhappy. Staff often tell Amazon about their concerns. In February 2023, after Amazon asked people to be in the office for three days a week, the workers protested. They also complained about Amazon cutting 27,000 jobs globally. Another complaint was about Amazon's contribution to climate change. Amazon's CEO has made a "bureaucracy mailbox" for staff to complain about company rules.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Working from Home - Level 0 Working from Home - Level 2   or  Working from Home - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/retail/2024/09/16/amazon-return-to-office-policy-five-days/75253666007/
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czj99ln72k9o
  • https://www.geekwire.com/2024/amazons-new-back-to-office-mandate-adds-to-debate-over-remote-work-and-employee-productivity/


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. COVID-19 was no longer a
  2. working from
  3. Amazon has decided
  4. We're going
  5. being in
  6. the way we were
  7. It said staff could
  8. learn from one
  1. before Covid
  2. health emergency
  3. collaborate
  4. to end this
  5. another
  6. home
  7. the office
  8. to return

Paragraph 2

  1. Some workers
  2. Staff often tell Amazon
  3. be in the office for
  4. They also complained
  5. cutting 27,000 jobs
  6. Amazon's contribution
  7. a "bureaucracy mailbox"
  8. company
  1. for staff to complain
  2. are unhappy
  3. rules
  4. three days a week
  5. to climate change
  6. about Amazon
  7. about their concerns
  8. globally

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

In 2023, the WHO said COVID-19 (1) ___________________ a health emergency. Today, many workers (2) ___________________ from home. Amazon has decided to end this. It (3) ___________________ to return to a five-day week from January. Amazon said: "We're going to return to being in the office the (4) ___________________ before…Covid." It said staff could collaborate, brainstorm, (5) ___________________ the office. They could also teach and learn from (6) ___________________.

Some (7) ___________________. Staff often tell Amazon about their concerns. In February 2023, after Amazon (8) ___________________ be in the office for three days a week, (9) ___________________. They also complained about Amazon cutting 27,000 jobs globally. Another (10) ___________________ Amazon's contribution (11) ___________________. Amazon's CEO has made a "bureaucracy mailbox" for (12) ___________________ about company rules.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

In2023,theWHOsaidCOVID-19wasnolongerahealthemergency.T
oday,manyworkersarestillworkingfromhome.Amazonhasdecidedto
endthis.Ittolditsstafftoreturntoafive-dayweekfromJanuary.Amazo
nsaid:"We'regoingtoreturntobeingintheofficethewaywewerebefore
Covid."Itsaidstaffcouldcollaborate,brainstorm,andinventintheoffice
.Theycouldalsoteachandlearnfromoneanotherbetter.Someworkers
areunhappy.StaffoftentellAmazonabouttheirconcerns.InFebruary2
023,afterAmazonaskedpeopletobeintheofficeforthreedaysaweek,th
eworkersprotested.TheyalsocomplainedaboutAmazoncutting27,00
0jobsglobally.AnothercomplaintwasaboutAmazon'scontributiontocl
imatechange.Amazon'sCEOhasmadea"bureaucracymailbox"forstaf
ftocomplainaboutcompanyrules.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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