Work-Related Vocabulary

An appointment is an arrangement to meet someone at a particular time and place.

You must make an appointment with your doctor or you can make an appointment to meet a counsellor.

Background is the experiences, knowledge, education, etc., in a person's past.

When Archie applied for his job, his employer did a background check to ask about his previous work experience and to verify that he had completed his studies.

Employee benefits can be supplemental health insurance, stock options, flex time, free child care or any other perks offered to employees in addition to their salaries.

Molly hopes her new job benefits include dental coverage because her daughter needs braces.

A career is the job or profession you do for a long time.

Some people make a career out of their jobs as clerks or waiters.

A career move is when someone changes from one employer to another usually with the hope of getting a promotion, better benefits, or working conditions.

Miguel left his job as a computer programmer to become a project manager. It was a good career move for him.

A career opportunity is the possibility of working someplace new.

Andrew is looking for a good career opportunity. He doesn't want just any job.

In English, a curriculum vitae is Latin for "course of life", often shortened to CV, is a short written summary of a person's career, qualifications, and education.

Natalie is a graphic designer. Her CV is very colourful.

In North America but not elsewhere, the term résumé is a common synonym for CV in this sense of short career summary.

Your first résumé should not be longer than one page.

A day job is a person's regular job and main source of income, typically as contrasted with a more enjoyable occupation or hobby.

My friend Josh works as a respiratory therapist. That's his day job (regular job). After his day job during the summer, Josh also works as a lifeguard at the public pool.

An employee is a person who is paid to work for someone else.

The co-op is a very good employer; they treat their employees well.

An employer is a person or company that provides a job paying wages or a salary to one or more people

My employer is my boss. She is not very flexible when I need a day off to study for my exams.

Experience is the practical knowledge, skill, or practice derived from direct observation of or participation in events or in a particular activity or the length participation.

Brody has 10 years' experience as a firefighter.

A full-time job can vary between 32-40 hours a week.

Do you work full-time?

Abishola works full-time as a nurse.

A part-time job can be only 3 hours or up to 25-30 hours per week.

Jana works part-time as a cashier in a supermarket.

If your employer allows for flex time, you may be allowed to start and finish your work day at a different time than other employees. This gives employees flexibility with school, traffic or children.

Finding a job that offers flex time in an excellent benefit for working parents.

A job description says what skills a person should have or the different tasks someone must be able to complete to do this job.

The job description says I must be bilingual. Is bilingual Spanish/French acceptable, or do you mean French/English when you say bilingual?

An interview is a a formal consultation to evaluate qualifications, personality, and ability.

I am looking for work and I have a job interview next week to work at a law firm. I will meet with the employer and answer some questions, and hopefully get the job.

A job title is the name of the position someone holds at their company, typically associated with a specific set of tasks and responsibilities.

Dwight's job title is: Assistant to the Regional Manager.

Labour are the people hired to do the work. A labour force (or workforce) is all the members of a particular organization who are able to work, viewed collectively.

Black athletes account for more than 70 percent of the labour force in professional football.

A manager is a person who is responsible for a part of a company or business. Managers may be in charge of a department and the people who work in it. In some cases, the manager is in charge of the whole business.

A restaurant manager often works on Saturdays and Sundays. The manager also hires and fires the employees and tells them what to do.

Minimum wage is the lowest wage permitted by law.

In Canada, the minimum wage is supposed to go up to 15$ per hour in 2023. No employer can pay their employees less than minimum wage. It’s the law.

A job opening means that there is work available.

There is an opening at the store down the road; maybe you should fill out an application and apply for the job.

Overtime is time in addition to what is normal, as time worked beyond one's scheduled working hours.

If you exceed 40 hours in a week, your employer must pay you overtime. Nurses and doctors do a lot of overtime.

A pay stub (or pay slip) is a piece of paper that is given to an employee with each paycheck and that shows the amount of money that the employee earned and the amount that was removed for taxes, insurance costs, etc.

If you count all of the hours that you have worked in a week, or a period of two weeks, you can check if you got paid correctly on your pay stub (or pay slip).

A position is a job.

The hotel is looking for someone to fill the position of phone operator; please see the job description at the front desk.

A profession is the kind of work that you complete long studies before you can get a degree.

Doctors, lawyers, accountants and teachers are all professionals.

A professional is a person that specializes in a certain line of work.

When you don’t know how to do something, you should hire a professional to do it, especially if it's something that could be dangerous.

Professional development is additional training to gain more knowledge and skills to do your job better.

Employees who don't find the time for professional development don't always get promotions.

A prospect is usually the chance or the possibility of something happening. However when someone is interviewed for a job and they say he/she is a good prospect, it means that this person is a good candidate for the job.

Rosa is the perfect job prospect because she's not just bilingual, she's trilingual!

Your salary, or wages, is the money earned for the hours worked or the job done.

Telecommunication Project Managers make a good salary.

A schedule is a plan giving lists of intended events and times.

According to the schedule, I work the late shift this weekend. When do you work?

You can access your class schedule on Omnivox.

NOTE: The bus is on schedule: it’s on time.

Seniority is a privileged position earned by reason of longer service or higher status.

Penny has been with the company for twenty years. She has seniority so she gets the best schedule. Angelique is at the bottom of the seniority list because she just started.

Tenure is a status granted to an employee, usually after a probationary period, indicating that the position or employment is permanent.

It takes most college professors over ten years to get tenure in Quebec.

A trade is usually a job that you do with your hands such as carpenter, a plumber or a baker.

If you are good with your hands you can learn a trade.

Training means that a more experienced employee will help you learn your new job.

When you start a new job, you may need to get training for a few weeks or months. An excellent question to ask during an interview: Will training be offered for new employees?

When someone loses their job (becomes unemployed) the government can give them money. This is called unemployment benefits.

The unemployment rate in Canada is around 8%.

When you apply for a job, you send in your CV (Curriculum vitae), your résumé, or you fill out an application form.

Lana has a fever and a cough. She took cough syrup, but she’s calling in sick this morning so she doesn't get her coworkers sick too.

If you or your parents have to go to Montreal to work and come back to the suburbs such as Longueuil or Lévis, then they have to commute to go to work; they go to a different city to work.

To earn a living is to make enough money to live. If you want to become an artist, it is a very rewarding job but you must have a lot of talent and a lot of luck to earn a living as an artist.

NOTE: When you work, you get a salary. In English, we earn money. You can win money when you play the lottery.

to earn ≠ to win

Stephanie lost her job; she got fired last night.

Jared asked his boss for a raise but he did not get it because the company is currently experiencing financial difficulty.

Jamillah was hired as a dental hygenist which means she got her dream job!

Luca hated his job so he quit! He will have to find a new job.

NOTE: In English, when you stop doing something, you quit. You quit a job, you leave a room.

quitter ≠ to quit

Paolo is running late for this meeting. He'd better hurry and get there soon!

Fatou scheduled her dentist appointment after her class so she wouldn't miss any important information.

My first job was teaching assistant. I started out as a teaching assistant and then I decided to complete my studies to become a teacher.

Naya took a job as a server to pay for her studies.

To work is to do a job. Most people enjoy working. Lazy people don't like to work hard.

In hospitals, the personnel often works in shifts from 8 am to 4 pm, 4 pm to midnight (12 am) or 12-8 am.

Some employees in construction and hospitals get paid extra money to work overtime. Teachers work overtime for free.